The League of Extraordinary Games
by Organ Man
Summary: A rock musician gets in over her head when circumstances rope her into becoming the chronicler for an elite group of operatives consisting of a government agent, an alien, a archaeologist, an inhuman monster, a scientist, and a young warrior.
1. Chapter 1

_"Boss, I know how you feel about rock music and that former call girl, Lynch. But the stadium needs the money, and the bands always bring it in. We've had dozens of suggestions to boost our profits, and the concerts are the only things that are…respectable enough. So I'm gonna forget the lyrics they sing and hire'em tonight. We'll discuss 'ethics' and 'taste' while we're counting the cash."  
-David Westra_

The Las Venturas stadium wasn't usually this packed. The soccer games and public speeches by the mayor were always attended by diehard sports fans and people eager to boo the politicians. It was always only half-full each time, as people and therianths in the city found more…engaging things to entertain them. But now it was filled with men, women, therianths and countless others, all eager for the music to start.

Casey Lynch was in the spotlight, with every creature in the stadium having their eyes and ears on her. Most would've panicked under the stress. But not Casey, lead guitarist for 'Sight Readers' and unofficial 'Goddess of Rock'. She just smirked and began the intro.

All present would agree Casey cut an unforgettable figure. Her platinum blonde hair flew in the breeze as her fingers danced across her guitar. Wearing her black bikini, the 'Electric' tattoo on her chest was in plain view and enhanced her aura of unrestrained rock. Her skintight black jeans with a gun symbol on the hips made her look as tough as she was beautiful.

Casey continued strumming her axe, as the rest of the band kicked in. Behind the stage, a small Pokemon providing the power for the band tapped its feet to the tune .Many would claim that the rest of the band was little more than backup for the goddess of rock. But they would all say it was a combination of their efforts that made the band unforgettable. Even if half the populace didn't know the lead singer's name. Still, it was clear that Casey composed all the music, and people thought she would be just as successful as a soloist or even a composer.

Casey didn't care either way. As the band launched into their best song, Casey felt a surge of absolute joy. This was the life. Playing her heart out in front of a loudly cheering audience. She couldn't imagine anything other than this concert. Was there even anything other than this city?  
With that in mind, she played even louder. The audience cheered in kind.

_"I got my work cut out for me finding this hero. People in this Hyrule country don't have last names, much less family archives or address books! I'm going to have to do this search on asking around…hope my conversation skills are up for it."  
-Douglas Cartland_

On the other side of the ocean from Las Venturas was an isolated country. The ocean was incredibly rough around the continent, as if the weather was trying to keep the ships passing through from discovering what was beyond the high mountains. With the advance of air travel, however, the kingdom of Hyrule had been recently discovered. However, the Governments of the world have recognized Hyrule's sovereignty and desire for privacy, and closed it off to commercial exploitation, including tourism and trade…unless in times of crisis. But it seemed that Hyrule was capable of handling its own crisis's.

A man and a woman walked through the thick Faron woods. The man kept looking around and marveling. Douglas had never seen unspoiled nature like this before…there were birds chirping and squirrels watching the pair move through their home. There was something else about these woods, something the detective couldn't put his finger on, that made the woods, for lack of a better word, magic. Douglas stroked his stubble and thought to himself, no wonder these guys don't want contact with the cities.

The woman he was traveling with broke him out of his reverie. "Are you certain this village is where he'll be?"

"Certain as I'm gonna be." Douglas shrugged.

That seemed to satisfy her. Douglas couldn't help but have a good look at the form of his companion. She was pretty, all right. A long brown ponytail snaked down from her head. She wore a form fitting shirt that made her rather ample bosom clear, and shorts belted with some very hi-tech equipment. Next to her, he looked even scruffier than normal in his coat. Douglas always figured archaeologists were old men in those ridiculous white hats. She came as a surprise.

Another surprise came when she stopped suddenly and grabbed Douglas. He snapped "What?"

"Something's coming. Be quiet, Mr. Cartland."

Mr. Cartland was quiet, and sure enough, there was a snapping noise of something stepping on a twig.

Douglas groaned. "Probably a cat or somethin'."

The lady smirked. "Maybe. But I've been in more jungles than you ever will, Douglas. They're as dangerous as they're pretty."

"Huh." Douglas scoffed. But he still put his hand on the gun he kept in his pocket. They kept walking on, in silence.

Lara was right. A few steps later a large purple creature brandishing a sharp blade smashed through the clearing and charged right at them. He was quickly joined by two others…Bokogoblins hunt in packs. The monstrous creatures charged at the two intruders.

Douglas grabbed his gun and thrust it out of his holster. While he was doing that, his companion went into action.

Douglas watched in wonderment as the woman smashed the lead creatures face with a well placed kick, before rapidly turning her attention on the two others. She leapt over the blade one of the creatures and, in a single movement, whipped out a gun that ended that creature's threat. Doing an impressive backflip, she hit the last Bokogoblin with some kung-fu move Douglas couldn't name, much less describe. In less than a minute, the three creatures were either dead or unconscious and the woman was standing over them without even a sweat.

Douglas looked at the gun that hadn't even been fired, and then at his companion. "Lady, they weren't kidding about you."

She just smiled. "They never do."

"Wooooow." A young voice that did not belong to either of them commented. Douglas and the woman turned to the voice.

A young blonde boy with several sticks in his hand was staring wide-eyed at the two. He wore what looked like a traditional Hyrule outfit. It looked funny to Douglas, but he figured that his jacket and pants looked funny to him.

Lara smiled friendlily. "Good day. Who might you be?"

"Um…my names Colin. Are you heroes like Link is?"

Both of their ears pricked up at the name. "Link?" Douglas replied. "You know Link? We're lookin' for him, actually."

"Yeah, I know where Link is. Do you wanna see him, mister…?"

"Douglas. This is Lara."

"Oh. Are you her husband?"

"Wha-" Douglas was stymied by the idea, but Lara quickly covered him.

"No. Just a friend. Anyway, can you take us to Link?"

"Sure! Ordon village is right this way." The boy piped up, and waved the two to follow him. Douglas looked at Lara and smiled.

"Certain as I'm gonna be."

Lara sighed and followed Colin with Douglas.

_"Another shocking example of how Pokemon continue to be abused is given by, not surprisingly, rock star Casey Lynch. She has neither a license nor the interest to get one, and yet she has taken a perfectly innocent Pikachu and brought it up in her image. Covered with garish tattoos, 'Jimi' is used as free power for her loud and senseless concerts. It's disgraceful. Absolutely disgraceful."  
-Dawn Harris_

Casey gave her fingers a few stretching exercises to make sure they were still functioning. That concert was longer than she had thought it would be…everyone wanted at least two encores. She was happy to give them, but now she was bushed. The theater manager, a bear therianth, was happy to have Casey take her pay and take herself out. Casey didn't mind. She was looking forward to crashing tonight.

"Heya, baby! Ready to show me yer backyard tonight?"

Casey groaned. Just what she needed, that twerp Sparrow. "I'm not in the mood, Eric."

The gangly teen didn't get the message. "C'mon, baby, we haven't got together since everrrrrr."  
Evidently he still thought himself a ladies' man. "Let's go paint the town red, rockers."

"I'm TIRED. Scram."

"Tired, eh? Well, maybe we can have an old-fashioned sleepover! C'mon baby, let's dance!"

Eric made his last mistake when he grabbed Casey's tush. An electric charge blasted out of seemingly nowhere, and Eric found that he simply could not move. He was still buzzing when Casey casually shoved him over and he lay flat on his back unable to get up.

Casey smiled. "Good timin' as always, Jimi."

A Pikachu ran out of the shadows at the sound of his mistress' voice. To say that Jimi was a ragged creature was an understatement. His yellow fur was long and scraggy, and he had copious scars that sang of a hard life. There were cuts on his chest, arms and face, and a particularly nasty slash across his throat. He had clearly been torn apart in battles…his tail was gone and his left ear was good as gone. He had two tattoos…JIMI, in stylized letters across his chest, and a fist in an 'L' shape on his forehead. Jimi also seemed bigger than most Pikachus…more the size of a cat than a mouse.

Still crackling with electricity, Jimi gave a practiced sneer at the hapless Sparrow before leaping onto Casey's shoulder. Casey gave him a good-job pat. "Thanks, Jim. Now let's head home and crash."  
Jimi smiled as he and Casey walked away, leaving Eric flat on the floor, muttering against that yellow rat.

_"Ahem, ok let's try this…Here we are at Nookington's, the most successful business in Las Venturas to be run by a Therianth. Therianths are human-like animals…er, no…animal-like humans…no, that won't work, uhh…a mixture of humans and animal? No…ah, forget it. They'll understand what I mean when they see Tom Nook. Get a good shot of him, Ty."  
-Gabrielle (Gabby) Horst, interviewer._

Las Venturas street was lit so much you didn't notice the sun wasn't there at night. Neon signs advertising the latest in entertainment and food illuminated the nighttime crowd wandering the city. Casey and Jimi nonchalantly walked towards the apartment where Casey resided, not bothering to look at the lights. They had seen it all before. King B's casinos, glow-in-the-dark trees, and the best (not really) in fast-food. The only thing that was new was an advertisement for the new show in town. Casey gave it a glance- "The pleaser of crowds, Dimentio!"-and kept walking.

Something caught Jimi's interest, though. Casey felt small claws press on her shoulder. Jimi did this when he wanted her attention. "What is it, Jimi?" she sighed, turning to her pet. Jimi pointed a small claw into his open mouth, and then pointed it to the direction he was facing. The scar across Jimi's neck kept him from making any sounds, and he had to communicate in pantomime. Casey turned to where Jimi was gesturing to and saw a building with "Nookingtons grocery store" on the window.

"Oh, right, we're out of food for you. Sorry Jimi, guess I just forgot. C'mon."

Tom Nook's store was one of the more respectable in Las Venturas. That may have been why it was so successful. Tom was the definition of a therianth, a species with the intelligence and posture of a human, but the fur, face and a few characteristics of an animal. He was a raccoon, with brown fur and the band across his eyes. The shopkeeper prided himself on the respectability of his business, so he was a little concerned when a female customer wearing little other than a bikini on top strode into his store.

"Um, miss…this is a respectable…"

Casey gave Tom a look and displayed some cash. "I'll be out in a sec, raccoon. I need to get some food."

Tom was tall enough for Casey to look straight in the eye, and became quiet with Casey's 'look' boring into him. His face became resigning, and he scratched his fur uncomfortably, impatiently waiting for Casey to leave.

Casey didn't keep him waiting. Snatching a box of Poke-food from the first shelf she saw, she strode over to Tom's counter and bought the box.

Tom couldn't help but notice Jimi glaring at the box. "Hm, maybe you should buy something your friend likes more…"

Casey rolled her eyes as she took her change. "He loves 'em." She suddenly ripped off the picture on the Poke-food box. "He just hates this." Casey didn't bother to pick up the scrap off the floor as she marched out of the store with the food. Tom glanced at it before he took it from the floor. It had a smiling Pikachu with immaculate fur. Yes, he could understand why such a scarred creature would resent that image…

_"That Gabby is such a twit. Does it LOOK like I've sold out? She's got some nerve, askin' me. Especially right outside where I live. Hah. I live for the music, not the money. If I've 'sold out', I'd be in one of those overpriced digs in those high-rises, livin' the yuppie lifestyle and cranking out bad songs for commercials! I don't feel the least bit sorry for giving her that roundhouse to the nose."  
-Casey Lynch_

Away from the glittering lights, it was painfully obvious it was nighttime, despite the valiant efforts of the streetlamps. Casey and Jimi walked past a fence covered with papers. Some were 'Missing' posters, others were cheap ads for cheaper goods, and a few were for sell-out bands Casey wouldn't acknowledge on principle. Once again, a notice for a "People for the Ethical Treatment of Pokemon" fundraiser had been replaced, after 17 other PETP posters had been defaced or destroyed in the last three weeks.

Jimi glared at the unmarred notice. Casey patted him down. "Tomorrow, Jim."

The place where the two lived was cheap and rent controlled. That was enough for Casey. Neither cared that the building was older than both of them combined. It did show though…a poorly powered sign with a name that had long been lost to vandals and never been replaced hung over a wooden door that had millions of tiny nail holes from bulletins.

Casey and Jimi walked through the building until they found their own room. Casey hit a switch and the light reluctantly shone on a bedroom/kitchen with walls covered with pictures of rock musicians, classical piano players, famous composers, and great musicians in general. There was really only one room…to increase space for the numerous tenants with nowhere else to afford, the rooms had been halved between the kitchens and the bedrooms. Casey got the kitchen, and used a mattress on the floor for sleeping. That was all she needed though.

Casey filled a bowl with Poke-food and set it down in front of Jimi, who ate up the food eagerly. She then noticed a skinny cat watching them from outside the window. A fist on the window and a shout of "SCRAM!" made it disappear into the night. That being done, Casey flopped down onto her mattress without bothering to change, expecting that tomorrow would be more or less the same.

The cat knew better.

_"Boss, I finally got a lead. Took me a few weeks…for a hero, only a handful of people really know the guy, and the ones that do aren't sure 'bout talking to someone like me. Can't blame 'em, I guess. Then this weird Sheik person gives me a tip, Ordon village, straight south of Castle Town. Best lead I got so far. Gonna check it out."  
-Douglas Cartland_

Colin came into the village followed by Lara and Douglas. Ordon was every bit a rural village, with wooden houses, a waterwheel, and crops near each house. One of the houses was built right into the largest tree Douglas had seen. Goats were wandering around the place, nibbling on the grass, and a hawk watched the small village from high above. The air was fresh, the water was clean and the place was quiet.

The two strangers had barely walked in before they were the centre of attention for everyone in the village. Seeing everyone staring at him and his companion, Douglas smiled nervously.

A man with a beard walked up to Colin. "There you are, son. I see you got some wood. Who might these be?" He gestured at the two people behind Colin.

Lara introduced herself. "My name is Lara. It's a pleasure, mister…"

"My name is Rusl. It's a pleasure to meet you too."

Douglas looked around. "Nice place. Where I'm from you don't get forests like this. Name's Douglas  
Cartland."

"Hello, Douglas. Lara." Rusl greeted them courteously. "What brings you to our village?"

"We're looking for someone. Guy named Link. We heard he lived here." Douglas explained.

Rusl was interested. "Yes, he lives here…what do you want with him?"

"Right now, Rusl, we just want to talk to him. Afterwards, it'll be entirely up to him. Do you know where he is?" Lara asked.

Rusl glanced at two other people, a large man with what appeared to be small tusks and a woman carrying a small baby in her arms. Both of them nodded. "Right this way." Rusl answered.

_"Now from what I've got together, some sort of attempted takeover happened in Hyrule couple of weeks ago. Creep named Zant from the 'Twilight Realm'. He had the entire country under siege for a while, but he was stopped by this…Link person, according to the sources I got. I hear he killed this Zant with his 'Master Sword' all by himself, and then some…his name kept coming up, doing heroic deeds and killing monsters all over the place. He might be more legitimate than Arbiter thought."  
-Lara Croft_

Rusl led Lara and Douglas into Ordon field, where the village usually kept its goats. Several of them were grazing. On the other side of the field was a youth. Douglas pointed to him. "That him?"

"That's him." Rusl answered.

"Thank you." Lara and Douglas walked towards Link.

Link noticed them coming. His blue eyes picked out the two strangers walking towards him. He got up just as they arrived.

"Hello." He said simply.

Douglas looked at him, quickly weighing him up. Young but very well-built, wearing a green tunic that Douglas could tell was covering a light chainmail. Brownish-hair, blue eyes…matched the description he got from the barkeeper. Didn't look like a hardened soldier, but looked like he could hold his own in a fight. Yeah, this was the guy.

"Good day." Lara stretched her hand out.

Link just looked at it at first, a little unsure what to do with it, but then raised his own hand and allowed it to be shook as a greeting.

"Mr. Link?"

"Yes…"

"My name is Lara Croft. I have something of a job offer for you…"


	2. Chapter 2

_"I'm browsing through some of the artifacts I've collected in the museums, reminiscing my glory days as a freelance archaeologist. Then a man in a nice suit, apparently incapable of making a fluid sentence, asks me if I'm interested in more work! I asked him, 'What kind of work?' and he answers, slowly, 'What it is you specialize in, Ms. Croft.' He's got my ear, so I ask him for a few details. He tells me I'll be working in some sort of team the government's bringing together, collecting and keeping safe 'objects of considerable power'. I haven't done a bloody thing for months, and I was in the mood for action, so I agreed. I'm meeting with this 'team' tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it."  
-Lara Croft_

Link wasn't certain exactly what he was going into with these two strangers. The woman, Lara, told him that he would be part of a group sponsored by something called a 'coalition of government'. He guessed that this coalition was the people who were in command of their countries, working together. He had never left Hyrule, but had learned from his ruler and friend Zelda that there were other places over the mountains and through the rough seas. He didn't know what they were like, but instinctively knew they were different from Hyrule. Very different.

And now he was going to an unknown with these two people.

After accepting Lara's offer, he packed his tools and told everyone he was going. They asked when he would be back, and he was honest. He didn't know. Douglas was honest as well: He didn't know either. Then they all asked why.

The best answer he had? "I think it's something I should do."

Link reflected on why he answered that, as the three headed towards Hyrule field. Lara hadn't presented him with a divine duty like the spirits of the forest had, the day he set out to save his friends when they were kidnapped by the Bulbins. She had presented it as a job, like the duty of a merchant in the market, and something he had the option of turning down and going back to his work as a shepherd.

But something stopped him from saying 'no'. What was it?

It wasn't as though he was worried about going into a mysterious adventure. He had done that before, that fateful day. He didn't know what would happen when he chased after his kidnapped friends out of the woods and into Hyrule. What had begun as a rescue mission for his loved ones spiraled into a journey that took him across the country of Hyrule, from the mountains to the lake to the desert to the grotto where had taken up the Master Sword.

Link touched the scabbard on his back that held the sword. The blade of evil's bane. What he had taken up when he accepted his destiny as hero. He had used the majestic blade to end the usurper king Zant's reign of terror over Hyrule, and then fell the true evil, Ganondorf, immortal king of evil. When that monster had died in the middle of the field, his duty was done…wasn't it? Then why had he held onto the blade?

Maybe he had been waiting for this day. Maybe a part of him felt he would need it again. Maybe it was the will of the goddesses.

Or maybe he simply wanted adventure again. After all the things he had seen and done, it was…strange for him to go back to his life as a shepherd in Ordon. He was grateful for the peace at first, but it had been weeks…and he was, for lack of a better word, restless now.

But now he had accepted Lara's offer, and there was no turning back. What would happen? He had never worked in a group before. What would become of this?

He supposed he would find out.

_"Timmy was in an accident, and now he's in a hospital back at my hometown! I have to drop everything and go there… How could this happen so quickly? Thank goodness I found someone to watch the shop while I'm away…or, rather someone found me. It's only for a day or two, but I'm concerned about how the customers will…react to this man. I told him this, and he smiles and tells me 'Don't worry, I once owned a mask shop, I know how to make a sale'… anyway, I better get going."  
-Tom Nook_

A car horn trying to drive away the early morning traffic woke Casey up. She found that Jimi had curled up in his pillow after eating his fill. The Pikachu was still snoring. Casey imagined that missing ear took a good portion of his hearing with it.

She got up and stretched quickly. As far as she knew, there were no booked concerts today. The day was entirely hers. What to do…

Well, the first thing to do was make breakfast. Cereal did the job fine. She was still eating it when Jimi finally roused up. Casey smiled wanly.

"Day's all ours, Jimi. Whaddaya wanna do first?"

Jimi rubbed the sleep from his eyes, and then smirked. He knew what he wanted to do.

"Oh right, of course. Lemme finish breakfast."

Breakfast was finished quickly, and Casey dug in her cupboard for a can. Among the Mace canisters was the last spray-paint can. Purple. Casey smirked.

"Ok, Jimi, one last can. Only half full, I think. Up close n' personal, or target practice?"

Jimi put his paw under his chin, furrowing his brow and looking far to the left like he was thinking hard. Then he got an inspiration, pointing his claw up in the air. Jimi curled his paw into a fist with one finger outstretched, like a gun, pointing into the distance.

"Target practice? Sure. Sidewalk could use a little color." Casey opened the window. From it they could see an empty sidewalk and the fence that they walked by last night. The one with the clean PETP poster. Jimi hopped onto the windowsill and snarled at the distant image.

Casey checked quickly to see if anyone was on the sidewalk…protest or not, she had to have limits. Upon seeing no-one there, Casey chucked the can onto the sidewalk, being careful to have it land and stop near the target poster. It did.

Casey patted her pet. "Ok, Jimi. Let's see some fireworks. Thunderbolt."

Before Casey had finished the word Thunderbolt, Jimi had fired. A blast of yellow lightning charged straight for the spray can. When it connected (Jimi's aim was dead-on) the can exploded. In a millisecond, the sidewalk, fence and most importantly the PETP poster was covered in thick purple paint. The manager would call the street cleaners to remove the paint from the sidewalk, but not bother with the fence. Like every other time.

Jimi and Casey shared a high-five.

_"Hello. My name is Dawn Harris, and I am the founder of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Pokemon. The PETP, if you will. The express purpose of this group is the abolishment of situations where Pokemon are abused and mistreated, namely, the battles trainers force these creatures to endure for their own entertainment. This is cruel and inhumane, and we will do everything in our power to make these brutal battles what they should be. Illegal."  
-Dawn Harris_

With nothing else to do today, Casey decided to pop by to see her friend Mindy. Green Pipes Point was a fair walk from her apartment. Casey took her time…it was a glorious day. Casey shook the dust out of her jean jacket as she and Jimi browsed the attempt at a wholesome suburbia in Las Venturas. Beer cans on the lawns betrayed how 'wholesome' it really was.

Casey looked onto the roofs of the houses. Running on top of them was the same cat she had shooed off last night. It was difficult to see with the sun in her eyes, but that emaciated frame was unmistakable. Was it following her? Casey drove that ridiculous notion out of her head just as she saw two children on the sidewalk, forcing two Pokemon dolls into each other.

"Rarrr! Raarr! Raaar!"  
"Use Tackle!"  
"Giga Drain! It's super effective!"  
"Rhydon don't use Giga Drain!"  
"This one can!"

Casey put on her best glowering expression. "Well, what have we here?" The kids looked up in surprise. "Didn't ya hear? Battling's illegal now! If the PETP catch you fighin', yer in for a MASSIVE fine!"

The kids looked ashamed. Casey smirked and tossed them a 10-dollar bill. "Pay it off wit' this. And keep it up. Only thing worth protestin' nowadays."

The kids were silent as Casey walked off, but then started their make-believe battle again $10 richer. Casey chuckled. That was money to a good cause.

_"The only reason those PETPricks got that stupid law passed is 'cause that Dawn's got friends in the courts. Unbeleivable. Next to nobody that has any brains supports that ban, but it still gets passed because they can speak all nice and money changes hands so easy. Ugh. I'm putting together a group of my own. Down wit' the PETPricks. DWTP…ah whatever."  
-Mindy Hawk_

Green Pipes point was a skateboard park, the best in Las Venturas. For a few dollars at the entrance, any aspiring boarder could play for an hour. Of course, as a friend to the co-owner and an awesome guitarist, Casey was allowed straight in.

There was very little organized equipment in the point, it was mostly boards and random objects scattered around the area, arranged in way that led for awesome combos for a skilled boarder…and spectacular failures for everyone else.

Mindy was easy to find. She was sitting on her usual bench drawing her comic book, American Wasteland. Mindy had short purple hair and a t-shirt with a stylized 'RIOT' on it. A Lucario with pierced ears and nose was beside her, leaning on the bench. They matched his mistress's piercings perfectly.

Mindy looked up to see Casey and Jimi. "'Sup?"

"No concerts today. Thought we'd come by to see the wipeouts." Casey sat herself down by Mindy. Jimi hopped off her shoulder onto the bench as well. "How's Tony?"

Mindy looked at her Lucario. "Just fine. Stir-crazy as hell, though." She stroked Tony's fur. "We'll get you playing sooner or later, Tony." The Lucario smiled.

Casey had to ask. "Jimi's getting restless too. How's the DTWP thing going?"

"Good and bad. We got a lotta supporters…still trying t'come up with a better name, plenty are insisting on it. But we still can't get out foot in the door. As far as the PETPricks are telling the gov, we're just a bunch of violent lunatics lookin' to 'abuse' again. What was abusive 'bout those old fights? 'Specially with what's happening now…" Mindy couldn't help but look at the ravaged Jimi when she spoke.

Jimi gave her a silent snarl. "Don't remind him." Casey warned.

Mindy groaned. "I'm sorry. But seriously, we could use 'im for a reason…"

Casey interrupted her. "Tried that. They think I gave him those scars like I did wit' the tattoos. I've got threats in my mail."

"You have?"

"Yep. They make good kindling." Casey decided to change the subject. "By the way, we've got at 18 posters today."

"That rocks. Keep it up."

"We will." Jimi and Casey smiled.

SMASH! Some amateur had figured he could do a grind he couldn't do. Casey, Mindy and their Pokemon turned to watch the others.

_"If those PETPricks could see what's happening in the alleys now…what, they pass a law banning Pokemon battles and assume everybody's gonna follow it? Haven't these twerps heard of Prohibition? With a choice of those dorky contests or sitting around and having your Pokemon become totally stir-crazy, no wonder so many of these kids head to the back alleys for a good old-fashioned battle. But wit' the crooks runnin' the shows and no regulations, 'to the death' becomes the order of the day. Tearing each other's friends into pieces, blood everywhere…and yet the kids still come 'cause there's no way to get a legal fight anywheres! 'Support Ethical Treatment of Pokemon'. Bullshit. It only got bad AFTER that law got passed."  
-Mindy Hawk_

At noon, Casey had walked back home. It had been an entertaining show at Green Pipes Point…the successful tricks were just as fun to watch as the wipeouts. But now for lunch.

Casey opened the cupboard in her home and exclaimed 'WHAT THE –"

Jimi's food was gone. The entire bag had disappeared. Casey dug around the kitchen/bedroom, but sure enough, there was no food for her pet anywhere.

Casey scratched her head. The door had been locked, and the window was closed. Besides, what self-respecting thief would steal Poke-food? Casey groaned and put on her shirt, trying to look as 'respectable' as she could. She was going to have to go back to Nookington's.

_"Lara insisted she come with me to pick up this Link…guess she figures an old man like me needs protection in the woods. Heh. Says she wants to see this 'hero' firsthand, sum him up, give him the invitation all nice-like. Fine with me. I ain't got nothing against havin' a companion like her in these woods. Wonder what it's like…only time I see woods is in the city parks."  
-Douglas Cartland_

Douglas, Link and Lara walked out into Hyrule Field. It was a large, grassy plain, with a few fences scattered about for seemingly no use. Hyrule Castle was in the distance, a five-peaked built mountain presiding over the land.

Link was about to keep going, but Lara stopped him. "Wait just a second."

Link was a little puzzled. There was no-one here…why did they bring him here? But he said nothing.

Douglas put his hand to his ear and muttered something to the black thing he carried in his palm. Link looked at him oddly. Douglas finished talking, and then everything began to rumble.

A loud roar erupted over the field that forced Link to cover his ears. Lara and Douglas barely seemed to notice it. Link forced himself to look at what was making that noise, and could not believe his eyes.

It was the size of Castle Town itself, and its shape reminded Link of a huge whale. It was a deep purple color, made of some metal Link could not name, and strangest of all, was hovering high over the ground without wings! It slowly descended towards Hyrule Field, towards the three.

Link could not contain his curiosity. "What IS that?"

"Its name's _The Master Chief_". Lara answered. "That is our ride."

_"I just got word of who the commander's going to be in this team. It's one of the veterans from the Halo wars. And not one of the humans! This might be even more interesting than I thought."  
-Lara Croft_

Casey had put on a blank T-shirt and her jean jacket. She figured that was 'respectable' enough not to get Nook into a fit. She planned to get in, pay for the food, and get out in time for Jimi's lunch.

That didn't happen.

When Casey walked into the store, a voice from the counter told her "I'm afraid you'll have to leave." It wasn't Tom Nook. Casey glanced at the man behind the counter.

He was gangly, and wore a purple coat that draped heavily over him. His eyes were in a permanent squint, and a strange forced smile that sent shivers down Casey's spine.

"Where's Nook?" She demanded.

"Visiting his son. He left me in charge, and I'm to uphold the respectability of this place, so go away."

Casey wasn't pleased. She stormed up to the counter to confront this rude creep. "Look bucko, I got money. Nook was never stupid enough to turn down a sale to me. I gotta get food for my pet."

"That's not the point, punk." The replacement salesman looked smug. "The fact is, your presence here soils the place."

"What-did-you-say?" Casey demanded, enraged.

"I said GO AWAY, trash. I won't say it again."

That was the last straw for Casey. She grabbed the salesman by the collar and dragged him over the counter. "NO ONE CALLS ME TRASH, CREEP!", she screamed, eyes red.

"Get your hands off me." The salesman replied calmly.

Two burly bodyguards dragged the furious Casey away from the salesman and threw her out onto the sidewalk in an undignified heap. Casey clambered up to her feet and snarled at the smug salesman on the other side. She didn't shout at him though, and simply stormed off back to her home, plotting revenge.

That salesman couldn't have made her angrier if he had tried.

Jimi was waiting for her back at the apartment. Casey related what had happened. "Sorry, Jimi, couldn't get yer food. Nook's gone, and some creep was there, wouldn't sell me anything, threw me out, and called me trash! The damned creep…" She fumed, and then got an idea. Casey grabbed her cell phone from her jean pocket.

Casey smiled deviously. "Gimme a charge, Jimi. I'm calling Mindy, we're borrowing her car tonight. I got something for us to do…and that salesman's gonna be sorry he ever messed with Casey Lynch."

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	3. Chapter 3

_"The war has been terrible. Many soldiers left their homes and families to fight for our world, going far from Earth to destroy the destructive Halo weapons. They fought to protect our planet and many others from annihilation at the hands of the fanatical Covenant. The Halo war is finally over, but not without a cost. Many soldiers never came back. They died for their families, their homes, and their world. May we never forget their sacrifice."  
-Lord Hood_

The Master Chief was a colossal ship. In a time of crisis, it could be used as a base unto itself. There was a storehouse for ammunition, a medical station for the wounded, even a makeshift kitchen for emergencies. Of course, it also had rooms for the living occupants.

Link had sat down at the far end of the room Lara had escorted him to. There was nothing unusual about the room (unlike the ship itself); it looked like a regular meeting place. There was nothing on the walls except a few closed windows and a small talking screen in the corner. There were seats all around the room, and a table that was big enough for six people.

"First of all," a fat man on the screen was saying, "They said that these 'Halo' weapons were designed to 'eradicate all life in the galaxy' to starve a parasite. That is so stupid!"

A man in a grey bodysuit was watching that screen rather intently. He wore a long bandana that nearly covered his eyes and had stubble on his chin he never bothered to shave. He occasionally cast a rather contemptuous glance at Link, muttering. He seemed to be someone who cast contemptuous glances at everyone.

"Overkill on a colossal scale! And somehow, the 'Master Cheif' was able to detonate one without killing everything! How does that work? Simple, it doesn't. Not if these weapons were as powerful as they say they were!"

The man beside him never looked at Link…he was more interested in what was on the computer he was working on. Although his eyes may have been shifting under those glasses he wore. He wore a curious bulky orange and black armor with what appeared to be an upside-down 'Y' on the chest. Small devices on his belt beeped and flickered occasionally.

"Here's the facts…Nobody with half a mind would make weapons like the halos to kill a bug. There is just no way. What more, how could 1 soldier defeat the entire covenant? Again, no way. So what does that tell us about the 'halo wars'?"

"Snake, change the channel." Lara warned.

"I like this show." The man in the grey bodysuit replied under his breath.

The fat man continued. "The government gained marshal power and had us sink money into a war against this alleged 'Covenant'. The so-called 'coalition' took power with ease in the middle of this crisis, it's painfully obvious that it was all pre-meditated!"

"Snake, change the channel." Lara demanded. "He'll be here soon." Snake didn't seem to hear her.

"The entire battle was an elaborate scam, worked out with the 'Covenant, to have this all-encompassing government coalition take power! I'll admit, they put a lot of work into it. The memorial that they've moved, the well-coordinated attacks, the-"

The fat man never finished. A small burst of plasma shot from behind where Link was and destroyed the screen before anyone could blink. Link took a brief look at the sparking, broken mess that was once a television, and then turned around to where that blast had come from.

Holding a smoking purple gun and looking very irritated was a creature unlike anything Link had ever seen. It stood seven feet tall, and had muscles that could pick anyone up and break them in two. It had a lizard's scales, and hands with three long and powerful fingers. It wore silver armor that had strange alien symbols carved into it, almost making it look sacred. The creature's eyes glared at where the screen had been.

"I did try to warn him, Arbiter." Lara noted.

Arbiter let out a sigh. He had a lizard's face, but his mouth opened up in four parts, like fleshy insect mandibles. He put down his plasma rifle and holstered it into a pocket in his armor. As he was doing so, his eyes fell on Link.

Link sensed it would be a good idea to be quiet.

Arbiter seemed unimpressed. "So," he said in a deep voice. "You are the Hylian? Link?" Link nodded.

Arbiter took the bow and arrows Link had brought along and turned them around in his hand. Snake let out a snort on the other side of the room. Arbiter gave the arrows a strange look before setting them down. He then picked up the scabbard that held Link's sword, looking at it closely before unsheathing the sword. "Such primitive weapons…" he muttered as he held the sword in his hands. He then spoke directly to Link. "Our benefactors specifically requested you be brought along into this group, but I have doubts on how useful you will actually…"

Suddenly he stopped. He had been holding the blade of the sword lightly in one of his hands, and a small twitch of pain got his attention. He looked at his hand. A trickle of greenish blood was coming from a small line in his hand.

Link's primitive sword had cut him with little effort. Arbiter gave a puzzled look at the mark in his tough skin, the gauge that told him his shield was working normally, the blade that had cut him, and the owner of that blade.

Arbiter looked very hard at Link before sheathing the sword. "Regardless. Let me make something very clear, Link. I am the commander of this league, the leader. You answer to ME now. If I command you to stay, you stay. If I tell you to fight, you fight. You go where I tell you, do as I order, and you do NOT disobey me. Is that clear, boy?"

Link was silent.

"Is that clear? Do you understand?"

Link answered. "Yes, sir."

Something resembling a smirk came onto Arbiter's face. "So you can speak. How refreshing." Arbiter cast a glance at the man in the glasses as he said this. Then he gave the scabbard back to Link.

He turned to the others. "We will be arriving in Silent Hill in a few moments. Lara, Snake, Gordon, you come with me. We will pick up this last 'member' quickly and professionally." He turned to Link. "You stay here."

Link remembered what Arbiter said. He imagined that was what he said to every person here. Everyone except for the man in the glasses (Gordon, Link guessed) said something to the like of 'Yes, sir.'

Bebeep. A noise from the helmet Arbiter wore told him something important.

"We're here."

_"How long has been since I have been on this planet? Ten years have passed on this world while I was on my own, trying to repair our shattered worlds in the wake of the war's end. And what is it I see when I return here? The memorial me and Lord Hood erected for those who fell in the battle has been moved, and these…insects…are out in force claiming the war was pre-meditated, in their words! That it was some conspiracy to drain them of their currency or force them accept the new coalition…Damn them all! I hold nothing against the soldiers who wish to think no more of the fight and go on with their lives, their courage and sacrifices deserve no less. But at the very least, can these worms realize that humans died for their ungrateful…If I see this insect I've been hearing all over these televisions screens, I will kill him. So he knows what those warriors went through for his miserable life."  
-Thel 'Vadum, Arbiter_

An old, unremarkable and well used car waited outside Nookingtons.

Casey got Jimi's food at another store, but she hadn't forgotten the way that creep of a salesman had threw her out even when she was 'respectable'. Casey wasn't one to forget an insult.

Of course, she wouldn't burglarize the store or smash the windows with Mindy's car. Nook didn't deserve to have his store discredited because of one lousy replacement salesman. No, this was between her and that skinny jerk.

Casey drummed the wheel as Jimi snored beside her. It was almost closing time, which was pretty late. But that salesman would come out sooner or later…

And then the fun would begin.

The red-haired salesman, still smiling, walked out of the store, being sure to lock it up behind him. He stopped for a second, as if taking in the late-night air. Then he walked to his own car, a green-colored one, and drove off.

Seemingly unaware that he was promptly followed by another car.

_"I still can't believe I let Laura drag me back here! Silent Hill, hell on earth last time I was here. But she begged me, and I finally had to cave in…brought my shotgun anyway. And what do you know? It's a normal town, a tourist resort. More than a little quiet, but otherwise, not a monster in sight. Just like when me and Mary came…I guess it's normal for me now I've gotten over her death."  
-James Sunderland_

Arbiter looked at the town from the window. The fog was thick around the place, almost obscuring the run-down buildings and the barbed-wire fences surrounding them. From the information he had been given, several 'incidents' had labeled Silent Hill unsafe, and the entire area was closed off to the public. The official statement why? 'Too many people disappearing', more or less.

Rtas was beside him. Rtas Vadumee was a fellow soldier almost from the beginning, and the closest thing Arbiter could call 'friend'. He was a Sangheili like Arbiter, but with white armor, and the left side of his mouth was torn off. Lara couldn't help but wonder how he could speak normally.

"It is good to be doing what we specialize in, Arbiter." Rtas noted out of the blue. "I was growing weary of that diplomatic nightmare on our world."

"True." Arbiter acknowledged. "But neither of us have done missions like these. With…soldiers like these." He motioned to Lara, Snake and Gordon. They didn't seem to notice the conversation.

"They are professional soldiers. I can tell." Rtas replied.

"It is not just them. The woman we're answering to back at our base…that boy with the arrows and sword…" Arbiter glanced at the cut on his hand. "And now this…target we're seeking here."

"I have not seen our quarry yet."

Arbiter handed Rtas' a picture of their target. Rtas looked at it carefully.

"This should prove to be interesting." He noted as the ship touched down.

_"Trash, huh Daddy? Is that what I was? Is that why you kicked me out after Mom died? I'm nothing but trash, never gonna amount to anything? Huh? Well, look at me now, pop. I'm a musician, the friggin' goddess of rock! Everyone talks about me, everyone knows my face, everyone loves my music...yah, that 'garbage' you hated. Mom was right. And you were wrong-oh. I ain't trash. And NOBODY'S gonna call me trash again. Certainly not you."  
-Casey Lynch_

Casey was winging it as far as 'messing up' the salesman. She wasn't sure herself what she would do…her standby was usually a roundhouse punch or a severed fuel line in the car. But when she saw the house the salesman was driving towards, another idea came to mind.

It was huge…a green mansion. What replacement salesman lived in digs like this? There were windows arranged in two rows…and two large windows above the door that looked almost like glaring eyes.

The salesman's car drove through the gate and stopped by the place. Casey fell back and parked out of sight. She roused Jimi awake. "C'mon, wake up now Jimi. I got an idea."

The security at the gate wasn't as much as Casey would expect. A video camera placed by the gate with a lock that did not look very expensive was all that stood between her and the target's house.

"Target practice." she whispered to Jimi. The Pikachu complied.

A single bolt of electricity was enough to reduce the camera to a sputtering cylinder that wouldn't rat on them anytime soon. Another thunderbolt and the door swung open, easy as anything.

Casey smirked. What cheap security! This would be a breeze. Still, Casey was smart enough to cover her face with a ski mask and hide Jimi's recognizable tattoos with a custom-made shirt and mask. The two burglars slunk into the yard and sneaked towards the back door, quiet as mice.

This would be a simple revenge. Get in, grab something the creep valued, and get out. The first step, of course was to get in.

So they went inside.

_"God in heaven…I'm, I'm walking through the town looking for Laura who ran off again, and in an alleyway I see…that monster…the red pyramid thing, knife and all…he completely ignored me but…Why is it still here?! I never should have come back here…I found Laura. She was in the bowling alley…alive and well, thank God, asked me what took me so long…We're in Brahms now. Drove the whole night…I am never going back there. Pyramid Head. Still in Silent Hill. How can it be?"  
-James Sunderland_

Arbiter, Rtas, Lara, Snake, Gordon and several backup soldiers walked off the ship, looking around. Rtas was in charge of the support soldiers, which included humans, Sangheili and a few Therianths. One of them, an orange fox, made an observation. "Sure is quiet."

"We are aware, McCloud. Stay on your guard, all of you."

Weapons at the ready, the group walked through Silent Hill. The fog made it nearly impossible to see more than a few meters in front of them. They could see the vague outline of decrepit buildings and a road that had seen rain, snow, and blood over many years.

Lara tapped the comm.-link on her ear. "Douglas? Do you read?"

"Loud and clear."

"Talk to me. Anything we should know about this town?"

"Nothin' much you haven't read from the reports. Cult activity, murders, accidents, disappearances. There is one thing though…"

"Halt!" A sharp order from Arbiter cut the conversation short. Everyone stopped the minute he made the command. There was a dead silence.

"What is it?" Snake muttered.

"Something is moving towards us." Arbiter looked at the red dots on his small radar screen. "A large group. Slowly. Ready yourselves."

At first, no-one saw anything through the fog. Then a quiet shuffling and thumping confirmed Arbiter's suspicions. Shadows began to materialize out of the fog, walking slowly and surely towards the group. It was a legion.

"Are you friend or foe?" Arbiter demanded. No-one in the shadowed group answered. They just kept walking forward. More like slumping…

Gordon brought out a powerful flashlight from his belt and turned it on. The leader of the group coming towards them was visible.

It was not a pretty picture. A uniform that would've once been a soldiers hung tattered and ragged over what was left of its wearer. The creature looked like something that had died, or should have died, a long time ago. It was a human, with empty eye sockets and skin so rotten the bottom half of his jaw had just fallen off. Claw-like fingers erupted from a rotted hand. A few of his insides were visible from the holes in his wretched uniform. A pan of the crowd revealed similar monstrosities. Most were humanlike creatures, some bore a resemblance to Therianth corpses and a few were Sangheili…things. Some had missing limbs, others looked like a straightjacket had been made of their own flesh. They snarled and made indescribable noises at the light as they lumbered towards the group.

"I'm going to guess they're foes." Lara remarked.

Arbiter didn't disagree. "Fire at will."

And they did. Soldiers picked up their firearms and blasted at the creatures. The human soldiers and therianths had standard firearms that peppered the monsters with bullets. Sangheilis melted what hadn't been killed already with their plasma pistols and rifles.

The fox McCloud glanced over at Gordon. The silent scientist with the glasses had whirled out a bulky gun unlike anything McCloud had ever seen before. He turned it on, and a metal pole that had been lying out on the street sped towards the gun, stopping suddenly to hover in front. Then, the pole shot straight out at full speed towards one of the creatures, felling it almost instantly.

Lara reopened her conversation with Douglas. "We're attacking zombies, Mr. Cartland. Does this have anything to do with that 'one thing'?"

Douglas made a noise of agreement on the other side of the link. "I've been told this town is somehow able t' recreate nightmares. Bad dreams, memories, guilt, sins…it somehow feeds off them and gives them life, makin' flesh and blood monsters to torment whatever unlucky soul come here."

"Is that so? Well then, I would say this town isn't really trying right now."

All of the creatures were dead. A few let out some cries of pain before joining their fellow monstrosities. The army lowered their weapons. That was easy.

One particularly reckless soldier from Rtas' group snorted and walked towards the corpses. "Is that it? Huh!"

Rtas tried to stop him. "Come back here, we do not know…"

"Hah!" The soldier kicked at the things they had just killed. "If there's more like this, no problem! Hahaha!" The careless soldier raised his cry to the city. "Bring it on!"

He was quickly answered.

Out of the shadows erupted the biggest blade any of the soldiers had seen. Before the group could blink, the reckless fool was run through by what appeared to be a butcher's knife that was almost as big as the soldier himself. The blade's bearer materialized out of the shadows to shove the dead soldier off his rusted knife with his foot.

The monster was a huge man. It seemed to be almost taller than Arbiter or Rtas. His powerful chest was bare, and he was wearing a long robe with multiple belts holding it up. On his head was a huge, blood-red helmet shaped like a pyramid, with the point coming down in the centre of his chest. His arms, robe, knife and helmet were splattered with blood, as if he had worn them to a slaughterhouse and never bothered to clean them.

McCloud pointed wide-eyed at the thing. "Is…that…?"

"Our target." Arbiter answered.

Read and review, please.


	4. Chapter 4

_"Jimi blew another amp today in rehearsal…He's got more power than I figured in that little body. It's crazy…we're playing, everything's good, then there's a flash and boom, buh-bye speaker. Don't think he meant to do it…I figure he got excited during the solo. I need to get him to tone it down a notch or find stronger amplifiers, or our free power's going to be more trouble than it's worth when we hit the big time."  
-Casey Lynch_

Casey had forgotten how much of a rush this was.

Lurking through the darkened corridors of the salesman's house with her pet, she mused over what fun this actually was. The feeling of actual danger, the promise of rewards, and the simple adrenaline rush. This was the most fun she had had in a long time.

The concerts were great, they were what she lived for, but…they had gotten monotonous now. Same old songs over and over again. What more, she was dead for inspiration for new music. Nothing new at all. And the band…they were getting annoying now, with royalties and fame and shares and all that pesky nonsense.

Casey needed excitement again. She needed…more, simply. Something new, something different. Years now of the same concerts, the same songs, the same creep Eric Sparrow. She needed actual, real fun, maybe somewhere other than Las Venturas. Maybe something like this…

No. Casey thought as she checked to see if a door was locked or not. It wasn't. Nothing could convince her to become a full-time crook…a bit too risky, and besides...

"Well," she muttered under her breath. "Finish up here at least. One night."  
But if not this…what next?

_"My collection…it's ancient. They all ask why I keep it. It's of no use to one such as me. The one who was last able to use them properly is long dead. But I know…someone has come who can use these masks. He does not need them yet, but he will soon. I was waiting for this a long time. This is why I kept them safe…why I made a new one. This one he will need first. Now…all that's left is to wait for her…"  
-The Happy Mask Salesman_

Casey opened the door and found thousands of eyes staring back at her.

She gasped before she managed to check herself and get a good look at the room she had entered. There was no-one inside…no flesh-and-blood person, anyway. And yet the lights were still on…they illuminated row upon row of strange and stranger masks, hung on the walls like an eerie mosaic.

There were a few masks Casey recognized from professional wrestling and hockey. But most of them were bizarre…there was a wooden one that looked like an undead face, one that was a literal gaping mouth, an oblong one with a crooked expression and mismatched eyes, and a face mask in the shape of an eagle. A hood with two lights for eyes, a wolf with white markings, a skull mask with bones making a bizarre crown… And a pair of ridiculous bunny ears on a nearby mannequin head.

Each and every one of them was preserved well and totally free of dust. "Well," Casey whispered to Jimi, "This narrows down what he values, eh?"Jimi nodded. Both of them did there best to avert their eyes from the unblinking gazes on the walls. The masks unnerved them in a way they couldn't describe. Almost as if some of them were alive…

"Let's not stick around long, Jimi. Which one do you figure he likes the most?" Casey whispered frantically.

Jimi looked around the room, and then pointed. Casey followed his finger. On a pedestal in the centre of the room, with a light shining on it specially, was a mask that looked the most human of the ones Casey had seen there. It was a man, with pale skin and white hair. Empty eyes stared at the musician. Tribal red and blue tattoos on his face made him look like a ferocious ancient god…

With the pedestal and light, Casey figured this mask was special. Perfect. This would get at the salesman good. Not wanting to stay in the room longer than she needed, Casey lifted it off the pedestal swiftly and carefully…

BREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Apparently not carefully enough. "SHIT!" She cursed as she and Jimi bolted towards the exit, the alarm bells blaring.

_"James, listen. A guy named Shepherd told me he had run into, uh, PH as well, so I think I got a theory. The…executioner of the old days of Silent Hill? He wore a…hood like PH, and carried the same kinda weapon. So that would've been the inspiration for…anyway. Now, this guy was created to punish you for…what happened with your wife, right? So I figure…He's based on an executioner (or maybe the executioner's based on him) and stopped bothering you when you had been punished enough. And Alex saw him kill his father, but left HIM alone even though… Maybe PH isn't just YOUR personal tormenter. Maybe he's something like the…epitome of 'justice' of Silent Hill, the one who makes the…wrongdoers suffer for their crimes. Or even…the spirit of Silent Hill retribution itself. You might not have created him…you might have just summoned him. Anyway, that's my theory."  
-Heather Mason_

No-one moved. Understandably, not one of the soldiers wanted to get near the creature with the colossal blade. Even Arbiter, Lara and Snake were a bit hesitant to act. They just watched the huge man to see if he would move towards them. Pyramid Head didn't seem to notice them, or if he did, didn't think that going towards them would be worth the trouble of dragging his heavy knife. He just stood there, over the body of the slain soldier. The army stared at him. No-one moved for a few moments.

Arbiter broke the silence. "Set your weapons on stun. We need him alive. Lara and Snake, get the darts ready. Gordon, try to disarm him."

Everyone did as they were told. Gordon turned on his bulky gun, pointing it at Pyramid Head's huge blade. It rushed out of a surprised man's hand towards Gordon…but it stopped far short of Gordon.

The reason was very clear. The handle of the knife was chained to the creature's hand…not in the style of handcuffs, but like the chain was welded onto the back of Pyramid Head's bare hand. He clearly did not want to lose it.

Snake fired one of the darts at the monster's chest. It connected…and nothing noticeable happened. Except that Pyramid Head got much more agitated than before, letting out a muffled scream from under his helmet.

"Tranquilizer?" Lara asked.  
"Yup."  
"I think we'll need more."

Pyramid Head grabbed the hovering chain with his other hand and pulled the floating blade towards him, fighting against Gordon's gravity gun with eerie ease. Once he reached the handle, he adjusted a rusty gear-like mechanism on the blade…

And suddenly the blade was shooting back towards Gordon faster than before. It stopped just short of him, hovering in front of his bulky machine just like the metal pole before. It happened so fast the man stammered back with the recoil.

Pyramid Head was holding a long, thin, sharp spear in his hand now. The handle of the knife was a concealed weapon unto itself…The heavy blade hovering in front of Gordon was a metal sleeve with a razor blade, which Pyramid Head had now shed.

Without the heavy blade to slow him down, Pyramid Head charged at the man who had shot him like an enraged rhino. Everyone instinctively fell back fast. Snake was moments away from impalement when he leapt out of the way. He didn't have time to fire another dart before he had to dodge an immediate counterattack from the creature. The spear whirled above his head…this guy was faster than he looked. A lot faster.

Snake managed to fire another tranquilizer dart before Pyramid Head grabbed him around the throat with his free hand. Snake kicked at the unflinching helmet without any effect. The monster raised his spear for a kill when he suddenly reared back in pain, releasing Snake onto the ground.

The helmet whirled around to see Lara holding an electrically-charged pistol. Another shot and Pyramid Head let out a muted scream as electricity charged through his veins. The enraged creature drew his spear back to throw. The chain was long and the creature's aim was dead-on…Lara would've been dead had she not ducked at the right time.

"Don't just stand there! Fire!" Rtas ordered his soldiers.

Immediately the creature was peppered with tranquilizer darts, plasma bursts and electric charges. He howled in anger but didn't go down, moving doggedly towards Lara and his spear.

Gordon had been waiting for a while now. The metal sleeve hovering in front of his gravity gun had taken a long time to rotate. Now, with the large blunt end facing Pyramid Head, he released the trigger on his bulky machine. The huge iron thing shot out right towards its bearer.

The heavy metal sleeve slammed into Pyramid Head at top speed. Even the implacable creature toppled at the force of the hit. That blow, combined with the shocks, tranquilizer and bolts, caused the colossal creature to fall flat on the ground.

Everyone approached the creature carefully, wondering if he was only playing dead or unconscious to lure them close. Gordon touched the creature's wrist, then turned to Arbiter and nodded.

Arbiter looked at the soldiers. "Get the restraints on this Pyramid Head and ready the capsule. Do not take any chances. Bring both parts of the blade as well."

No-one disagreed, but McCloud couldn't hide his question. "Um…we're taking this thing WITH us?"

"Yes." Arbiter answered. "Do not ask me why, McCloud. Our benefactors insisted we take him alive. They believe that he will be of use to us.  
Now, let's return to our base."

"_Gordon Freeman has significant…field experience in this line of work. Do not let his silence and degree in theoretical physics fool you. He may be a…scientist, but he is just as capable of holding his own in a battle as you are, Thel Vadum. As your… sponsor, I can vouch for Mr. Freeman's usefulness. He will serve our interests…well."  
-G-man_

A small carrier craft hovered towards a green mansion under cover of darkness. Two soldiers, a human and a falcon therianth, were in the cockpit, looking out at the large place. The therianth looked disdainfully at the picture of the target.

"What's so special 'bout this mask thing?"

"I dunno, Lombardi. But I'm not one to disobey orders."

"Course not." Lombardi muttered. "How did I get roped into this 'league'? Not even the actual league, just a bunch of errand boys…"

"Lombardi, be quiet. We need to think about how to get this target without raising a fuss. The boss was very clear we weren't supposed to cause a scene…"

A loud alarm from the mansion cut him off.

"Oh great. We caused a scene."

"No…I don't think that was us…"

The pilot saw two creatures bolt out of the door like scared rabbits. "Burglars. Figures. Now wha-"

A thought had struck Lombardi. He grabbed the camera near him and zoomed in on the fleeing miscreants. A human woman and what appeared to be a Pikachu, both in a black disguise. And the woman was carrying what they were after!

"Hey, lookit this. Looks like we can save ourselves some time."  
"What?"  
"Let me do this. Shouldn't take a minute…"

Casey and Jimi ran through the gate and towards the car, the mask they stole in Casey's hands. The two burglars tore through the mansion's lawn until they reached their getaway car. Made it! Casey thought as she fumbled for the keys…

Then she heard a bizarre hum high above her. The police, having arrived fast, was her first thought, and she tried to open the car doors faster…

But then she realized that hum was not a helicopter. At all. She had never heard anything like it before. Curiosity getting the better of her, she turned to look…

It was definitely not the police. That was all she could register before a metal arm shot out from whatever it was and grabbed her.  
"HEY!" She screamed as the tentacle pulled her up. Ever devoted to his mistress, Jimi grabbed onto her with his claws, and they were both dragged into the mysterious carrier…

Lombardi returned to the cockpit with a smirk of triumph. "Had to use the sedatives on 'em, real tenacious two, but we got the mask!" He presented the tattooed face to his copilot.  
"Great!"

The communications display in the cockpit flickered on, as if it had heard them. They were both a little spooked by the oddly precise timing of the communication. But the man who appeared on the screen was someone who spooked people quite a bit. He had a drawn, pale face, with aqua eyes that seemed to hide a multitude of secrets and plans. His hair was impeccably trimmed and his suit and tie neat as possible.

"Lombardi. Diemen. Have you been successful?" Both Lombardi and Diemen felt the G-man didn't need to ask that question. Nevertheless, they answered. "Yes, sir. We have your mask."

"That is good. Now return to base immediately."

"Immediately, sir? We got two…"  
"IMMEDIATELY. Why haven't you moved yet?" The man was getting impatient.  
"Well –"

"Yes sir." Diemen interrupted Lombardi and began to move the carrier. The transmission was cut before Lombardi could explain about the two creatures in the carrier.

"Uh…What about those burglars in the back? What do we do with them?"

"I don't know, but if he wants us back at the base now, we get back to the base now. We'll tell him as soon as we can."

The carrier zoomed off into the night with two pilots, a mask, and Casey and Jimi, both unaware of where they were going.

"This is gonna be interesting..." Lombardi mused.

Two squinted eyes watched the carrier leave. The alarm had been shut off, and the salesman smiled. Walking though his mask collection, he brought out a cell phone and began talking to someone on the other side of the line.

"It's the salesman. All is going as planned…"

OK, no new chapters until I get some reviews for this story.


	5. Chapter 5

_"Solid Snake…number seven, here. Ha hah ha. Yep. I'm in action now. But for what? Now I'm working for what amounts to a bunch of government errand boys. And apparently I'm taking orders from the fourjawed alien commander who nearly blew us all up in the Halo wars. Working WITH a foureyes, a woman…and from the sound of it, some kid swordsman and a…ugh. I'd complain, but then I remember that this is the entire reason I got made."  
-Solid Snake_

Restrained and put into a special capsule, Pyramid Head was brought onboard the Master Chief. It took 4 soldiers to drag the metal sleeve of Pyramid Head's blade…and a lot more to bring in Pyramid Head himself. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when he was aboard and the ship was ready to return to base.

Snake, Lara and Gordon walked back to the meeting room. Link acknowledged them coming in. Snake gave him an odd look, then muttered to Lara. "Is that kid in the exact same spot as when we left?"

"We weren't gone that long." was Lara's only reply. "No matter. Sit down, everyone. We're moving again."

Link asked. "Where?"

Snake smirked. "Oh, you'll see."

_"...And that's a hundred. Heheh. That was one of the better blasts. A concert at the old abandoned Pokemon Centre sounded a bit weird at first, but I figured 'what the heck, let's go'. Looks like I won't regret…hey, whassat? Looks like a Pokemon…oh, man…What did they do to this Pikachu? Jesus Christ, it's still alive…"  
-Casey Lynch_

Jimi opened his eyes slowly. Things had been topsy turvy for a long time…he remembered grabbing onto Casey when she had been snatched by that bizarre thing that wasn't a police helicopter, and then…

Jimi picked himself up and took stock of his surroundings. The first thing he noticed was the bars…He was in a cage!

Grabbing the bars, the Pikachu took a look outside. Best he could see, he was in a dark storage room. No-one else was in the room, far as he could see. No guards or even any other prisoners.

Perfect.

A brilliant yellow light lit up from inside the cage, accompanied by a powerful sparking noise. Then a thunderbolt tore at the metal bars viciously. The withered, blasted metal remnants were easy to break. Jimi leapt out of the cage and onto the floor. He had to find his mistress.

The door Jimi saw wasn't even locked…whoever had taken him and Casey hadn't figured that he was worth much effort to guard. Jimi smirked and leapt onto the doorknob, opening the door with a little effort.

Jimi glanced around to see if anyone was there. There wasn't even a guard in sight. Hah! Jimi ran out of the storage room into a hallway. The place had rich carpeting and some unusual pictures hanging on the walls. Jimi didn't really look though. He tore across the hallway…

And stopped dead in his tracks when he passed a window. Another long look outside convinced him he hadn't imagined it. Jimi looked outside with wide, shocked eyes.

_"-this button and then you speak into it. Say whether or not we've accomplished the assignment. Ahem We have successfully picked up the last two operatives from Hyrule and Silent Hill. We lost one backup, Alexis."  
"And the point of this is?"  
"Arbiter, one of our sponsors asked that we record the results of all our missions on these audio diaries. For the sake of posterity."  
"Posterity? Why would you need to record military assignments for posterity? I would have thought the results spoke for themselves, Lara."  
"I don't know, Arbiter. And another thing…we need to have some sort of Chronicler, someone to record meetings, assignments and keep track of these audio diaries. Not one of the actual league."  
"Do you want me to tell Rtas that one of his soldiers will have to be delegated to saying 'mission accomplished' to a box to satisfy our benefactor? This is ridiculous. Why do they need this?"  
"Well…uh, guess I'd better turn this off…"_

Link drummed his fingers on his seat. It had been a while since they had left Silent Hill. And he had not gotten an answer about where this 'base' was. The window was shut and covered as well. Where were they going, and what was he doing here?

Link noticed Arbiter and another of his kind walking in, speaking to each other. The other one had white armor and was missing two of his mandibles. Arbiter pointed to him, and then the palm of his hand. Link couldn't hear the conversation, but he could tell it was about him. The one in the white armor gave Link an intrigued look. Arbiter made an announcement. "We are approaching the base. We will be disembarking shortly. Be ready."

Rtas turned to Link and noticed the blinds on the window were shut. "Would you like to see it, boy?" Rtas asked. Link nodded. Rtas tapped the side of his headset. "Pilot. Are we able to remove the blinds on the windows in Room 17? Good." Rtas motioned to the window behind Link.

The blinds opened, and Link stared in shock.

They were deep underwater, at the bottom of an ocean. Fish and colossal Wailords swam by nonchalantly, seemingly not noticing the colossal ship in their midst. But that wasn't what made Link gasp.

It was a city. A huge city, larger than Castle Town, larger than the Master Chief. Tall metal buildings with lights from hundreds of windows were sprawled out on the sea floor. Walkways between the buildings connected the underwater city in a complex web of steel and glass. Spotlights shone throughout the city, illuminating the unusual designs of the skyscrapers…more like surfacescrapers. A city at the bottom of the sea.

Rtas read Link's mind. "Impressive, isn't it? This will be your home for the time being. Welcome to Rapture."

_"I had to blow most of my cut from the Pokemon Centre Concert, but it looks like that Pikachu I found is going to be fine now. Good to hear. Mindy was telling me about this 'hardcore' movement that's come up in the alleys…didn't think much of it until I saw this little guy…anyway, I had to tell the nurse the Pikachu belonged to me so she would actually treat him. Protocol. Had me sign a bunch of forms… So, looks like I got a pet. Maybe he could help the band with our electric bill."  
-Casey Lynch_

Upon hearing two people walking up, Jimi scuttled into the shadows. Two men in soldier's uniforms strode by, chatting.

"So I hear Diemen and the therianth got a couple of stowaways on their little errand."

"Yeah. They got 'em both locked up until the bosses decide what to do with 'em. Heh. Don't think the bosses know yet."

"Just the owner of this city. The creepy lady with the glasses." He pointed to a poster on the wall. Two very blue eyes stared out from behind horn-rimmed glasses in the image. The words under them were 'You are not alone.' "I think the alien hasn't come back yet. Some pick-up job."

"Huh. Where are these stowaways?"

"They separated them. There's one of them Pokemon in the storage room over there, and a girl. Well-endowed, I gotta say. Heheh. She's down in Medical Pavilion, under lock and key."

"Hot girl, huh?"

"Yeah. Totally. Punk trash, though."

A sudden bolt of electricity from the shadows rendered the speaker immobile. The other barely had time to react when another bolt stopped him. Jimi ran out of the shadows past the two guards. Now he had the name of a location…now he just needed the actual location. Luckily, a map labeled 'Rapture' was close at hand in the building. Judging from the 'You are Here' dot, Medical Pavilion was a fair distance away.

Jimi started running.

_"Sofia Lamb. As the last 'ruler' of Rapture, she is the de facto representative of the city we're using as a base. Which means she has to have a part in everything we do down here. Rebuilding, fixing, adding new buildings for the phantoms…she always has to be there, watching us. I wouldn't have a problem with that, but considering Lamb's history down here…remnants of her cult of personality are all over the place- posters, propaganda, alters, not to mention the corpses- even as we clean everything up for the league. She'll excuse me if I don't salute."  
-Solid Snake_

A large docking platform had been created for the Master Chief. It ran adjacent to a building with a large neon sign proclaiming 'Welcome to Rapture' placed high on the surfacescraper. The colossal ship docked onto the platform, and a metal tube extended from the building to the exit. The pressure equalized in both, and a door leading into the building opened.

Lara led Link into the building through the walkway. Waiting for them was a woman flanked by two colossal creatures. The woman had blonde hair in a curious curl on her head, and wore horn-rimmed glasses. Her eyes seemed to look deep into a person's mind. A simple dress and cardigan with a blue butterfly brooch was what she wore. She had a thin cigarette in her mouth, breathing it calmly. Beside her were what appeared to be hulking masses of worms. The creatures were easily over twice her size, and wore armor that was similar to Arbiter and Rtas', with long metal shields and what appeared to be large cannons on their hands.

Arbiter grudgingly acknowledged the woman. "Sofia Lamb."

Lamb got up, smiling slightly. "I trust then the mission was a success." She noted, glancing at Link and the metal capsule containing Pyramid Head.

"Yes." Lara assured.

"Excellent." Sofia adjusted her glasses. "I still have not received word from you about the chronicler…"

"The matter will be handled in time, Lamb." Arbiter snapped in response. "Now, if someone could escort Link to his new quarters and move this capsule…"

"I'll show Link to his room." Lara volunteered.

"Good. Now, move the capsule to the designated area by Arcadia. Our benefactors want a word with 'Pyramid Head' when he awakes." Sofia issued orders.

Lara motioned Link to follow her. "This way to your room, Link."

_"My eyes nearly popped out of me head when I saw this place …Rapture, a real-life Atlantis! Never seen anything like it. Of course, there's the actual job me and my brother were brought down here for. Helping to fix this place, which has countless rust and leaks from its violent days, is no easy task. Broken pipes at the bottom of the ocean are any plumber's nightmare! And this place has plenty of them. Mamma mia. Good thing the pay is very good."  
-Mario_

Walking through the city was an amazing experience for Link. Even Lara had to admit it was an interesting walk no matter how many times you go down it.

Rapture had been built in the distant past, and was rich in art and breakthroughs in science…before the civil war. Anyone could tell from the torn walls and broken banisters that this place had seen a lot of violence over the years. In fact, when the league had first arrived at this incredibly promising base, there were corpses and blood everywhere. They had only recently cleaned it up and made the place useable for the group. But one could almost smell a bloody history in the halls. Windows had been repaired and reinforced, holes in the wall were covered up, and a smell of soap and disinfectant announced the place had been cleaned up thoroughly. On the walls were murals and art more beautiful than Link had ever seen. There were also posters of the woman Link had seen earlier…Sofia Lamb, with messages scrawled over them, ranging from 'Lamb will lead the way' to things that could not be put in print. There were also busts of a man in a small mustache, curious stone hands pulling a chain on the walls, and what Link guessed were advertisements for various goods and services. Judging from the age and condition of these posters, he imagined that he would not get a free 'Plasmid' from Dandy Dental now.

Lara led him through a glass walkway leading to a building with the sign 'Mercury Suites' on it. Link looked briefly out at the ocean as they strode inside. Going up a staircase inside the building, Lara showed Link a door with the number 213 on it. "Here's your place. Stay here for the time being. We'll inform you when we need you."

Link nodded and walked in.

It was much larger than his home in Ordon. There was a bookshelf with several books, a large bed with red covers, and another one of those mysterious paintings on the walls. Link sat down on a nearby chair, looking around him and wondering what would happen now that he was here.

_"The Arbiter does not trust me. He regards me as yet another tyrant, clutching on to the city she once ruled, no better than the hierarchs he rebelled against in the war and the loyalists he struggles with on his world. I suppose I deserve that title. Regardless, the creatures he has ordered to…watch me…are fascinating to me. Hunters are a collective of thousands of individual creatures, all with a single mind, making them far more powerful than any of them could be on their own. The very essence of collectivism, being made to moniter a woman who once preached unity with…a fanatical fervor. The irony does not escape me."  
-Sofia Lamb_

Jimi scuttled through the metal vents as quickly as he could. He realized very quickly that these wide ventilation shafts were the best way to get around this city as quickly and quietly as possible. Going in the direction he had figured to be towards the Medical pavilion where Casey was being held, he moved as fast as he could.

Out of the corner of his ear he could hear a rustling. Was he alone in these vents? That rustling told him otherwise. He quickened his pace along the way. Without warning, he was jarred by a loud banging and rattling in the ventilation system.

Arbiter and Sofia heard the banging as well. They were walking along, discussing recent events.

"What was that?"

"A rodent. Or perhaps water pressure." Sofia answered him. "It's been occurring periodically for the last few months now."

Arbiter wasn't particularly satisfied with that answer, but it was enough. "Is there anything else to report, Sofia?"

"Just one thing. Lombardi and Diemen were successful in obtaining their target, but in their rush they picked up two stowaways. We have them sedated and in containment."

Arbiter turned to Sofia. "Stowaways?"

"Two thieves who took the mask before they had arrived. They opted to save time and take the thieves with them."

Arbiter was a little less than pleased at this news.

He was even less pleased when the two came across two paralyzed soldiers on their walk. "What happened?" Arbiter demanded when the soldiers were mobile enough to speak.

"One of the stowaways…a Pikachu. He heard we were… keeping the other one in… Medical."

"And it's loose?" Arbiter demanded.

"I guess it…got loose…"

That made Arbiter very angry indeed. "Lara, Snake, go down to medical pavilion. NOW. We have intruders…"

Finally, chapter 5!


	6. Chapter 6

_"Taming this little guy ain't a picnic, but it's not as hard as I would've thought. I managed to get him to use the mat for sleepin' and convince him not to run away...still looks at me a little off though. Doesn't trust me just yet. I can't tell what he wants half the time 'cause he can't talk...then again, it wouldn't be much different if he could, from what I hear. Anyway, since I don't have a license, I gotta think up some way t' make sure he doesn't get snatched from me. Maybe a few good old fashioned labels..."  
-Casey Lynch_

It was all fuzzy for Casey when she woke up. Everything whirled around for a bit when she sat up. She vaguely remembered being pulled towards a light, struggling with...something before being hit with a needle, and now...

It all stopped whirling and Casey registered where she was. It was some sort of hospital room...the floor was tiled, and she was on a cot that had seen...quite a bit. She hopped off quickly and struggled briefly to get her pins together. She was still wearing the black t-shirt and jeans she had when she burgled the salesman's house. There were no windows in the room, just a bright light and a few posters advertising 'Steinman's surgical procedures'. At least, that was what she thought they advertised...most of them were mangled beyond recognition. Being here was not very comfortable. Was she aboard a ship or something?

Casey muttered, still in the middle of waking up, when she realized something that made her snap back to reality.

Jimi wasn't with her!

"Jimi..." She called a little hoarsely, still groggy. Then she shook her head clear and yelled "JIMI!" With her head on straight again, she ran to the door, only to find it locked. Dammit! She rattled with the lock angrily before yelling out. "WHO'S THERE?! WHERE THE HELL AM I?! JIMI!" It seemed nobody heard her, so she got louder. "WHERE'S MY PIKACHU? IS ANYBODY THERE? HUH?! WHERE IS THIS FRIGGIN" PLACE?! JIMI!"

A sparking on the door stopped her from yelling anymore. She backed off.

The electric lock on the door spurted out like an overloaded amp. Then it blew up with a fizzle, and the door swung open slowly. A Pikachu ran through the door and hopped right into it's mistress' arms. Casey Lynch was relieved beyond belief.

"JIMI! Thank God...At least you're good. Any idea where the hell we are..."

Suddenly, a man in a grey bodysuit blasted through the open doorway, a gun at the ready. Upon seeing who was there, though, he let out a snort of irritation.

"Is THIS it?" Snake snorted.

Casey felt stung, she could tell it was an insult. "Yeah, that's it, bucko! What's it to you, huh? Now where the f %$ am I?" Casey demanded. Jimi snarled silently at the man, beginning to spark threateningy.

Snake didn't move, and didn't point the gun down. "You shuttup, kid. This is what they get me out for? Some punk and her pet? This isn't what I -"

Snake didn't finish. A bolt from the punk's pet hit him full force, knocking him down. His suit protected him from the majority of the shock, but he was still floored right in front of Arbiter and Lara Croft, who had just arrived themselves. Snarling, Snake attempted to get back up, only to find his muscles weren't to keen on obeying.

Lara and Arbiter looked inside at the creature that had escaped confinement and was able to infiltrate their base, paralyzing several guards and Snake. Arbiter stepped into the room, looking at Casey Lynch hard.

Casey's tough veneer vanished at the sight of the colossal alien. "You're one of the...woah..." She gulped, wide-eyed. She had heard stories about the 'halo' fourjaw aliens, both that they existed and that they didn't exist. And now here was one. Jimi started to spark again, but Casey stopped him. "Easy Jimi...I don't think we wanna make this guy mad..." Jimi obeyed.

Arbiter stared hard at Casey before speaking. "What is your name?"

"Uhhh...Casey. This is Jimi..."

"How did you get here?"

"I-I'm not sure...I was sleeping, I just woke up...Last I remember a...uh...ship thing was grabbing me..."

"You had an item two of my operatives were searching for. What were you doing with that item?"

"Item? You mean the mask? Uh..." A lie buzzed thorugh Casey's head, but she decided it'd be best to tell the truth. "The guy who lives there...insulted me, so I decided to take somethin' of his...that seemed like the best thing to take..."

Arbiter stared at Casey and Jimi harder than before. Then Lara came in.

"One last question, Casey." She held up an audio diary, a small plastic thing with a tape-recorder inside. "Do you know how to work this?"

"Uhh...yeah, course I do."

Arbiter glanced at Lara. Lara smiled slightly. "Arbiter, can I speak with you for a minute?"

Arbiter figured out what she was getting at. He looked back at Casey. "Stay here. I may want to speak to you later, Casey. And I do not want to hear about any more trouble. Is that understood?"

"Yes sir..." Arbiter had a curious aura about him...spealking with him, one was compelled to say 'sir', no matter how well you knew him.

Arbiter walked out with Lara, getting the stunned Snake back on his feet. Snake scowled at the two before walking away slowly.

Casey and Jimi looked at each other. Now what?

_"Lara is not a soldier. She is a mercenary, accostomed to working alone, without superiors or direct orders. This makes her tough and clever enough to handle herself, but...it also makes her somewhat insubordinate. She talks back, she suggests options I do not find favorable, sometimes she even ignores orders completley! However, she is very creative, and certainly knows how to finish an assignment. I suppose I should tolerate her for the time being. But if she steps too far out of line, I will deal with her as I would any insubordinate."  
-Arbiter_

"You cannot be serious."

"Why not?" Lara retorted.

Lara and Arbiter were standing outside one of the reinforced windows, looking out onto the sea. Chinchou swam by, illuminating the window and making them look like silhouettes.

"You mean to bring this stranger onboard as our chronicler."

"She knows how to work the diaries. You said it yourself, it's just a matter of saying 'mission accomplised' into a box. What could be the problem?"

"Lara..."

"The sponsors insisted on a chronicler. You don't want to have one of the backups delegated to that job. We've got someone here, she's capable, and she has a pet that could prove to be useful. This is actually very convenient, really."

Arbiter was quiet for a bit, thinking. "My main concern is not that. Can she be controlled?"

"She was pretty scared of you. I think we can handle her."

Arbiter mulled for a minute, staring out at the underwater city. Then he heaved a sigh.

"I will inform Sofia."

_"Mindy, you will friggin not believe where I am right now! I am at the bottom of the Atlantic ocean, in friggin' underwater New York, playing recorder to a government team that includes one of of those fourjawed aliens...yeah, they're real. It's crazy, but a mask I stole from that creep of a salesman was something they were after, and they took me and Jimi with it and now...Holy cow. I was looking forward to some excitement, but this is insane! OK, now for the bad news. The woman in charge, Lara, tells me I probably won't be topside for a while...in fact, you probably won't even hear this, everything is top secret. Sigh. Well, if ya do get this, I'm alright."  
-Casey Lynch_

In another room in Rapture, far away from Lara, Arbiter, Casey and Jimi, Pyramid Head was rousing.  
He had been put in a spartan room, with a door that had been reinforced several times. There was nothing in the room except a large screen and a big cot for Pyramid Head to rest on.

The huge man got onto his feet and noticed something. His robe and helmet had been cleaned...there was no blood or rust on them anymore. And his blade...

His blade wasn't in the room with him. He looked and the chain that bound him to his knife was going through a small hole in the wall...doubtless to where the blade was. He was ready to tear away at the hole when the huge screen flickered on.

"Ah, so you are...finally awake."

The man appearing on the screen was clean cut and had eerie eyes. He had Pyramid Head's undivided attention now.

"What do you hope to do now? Break out? To where? You are at the bottom of the ocean. Now you answer to us and...go where we tell you too. But don't worry...this will be good for you.  
I know you. You have a need...to punish the guilty. You are retribution. But tell me...who is there to punish in your town? All have left. What good is an executioner...when there is no-one to execute?"

Pyramid Head watched as the screen changed. Now a man...no, a monster, was attacking a city. The creature had what appeared to be a huge tentacle thing, and it was grabbing screaming people left and right and...eating them, it seemed.

The man came back on the screen. "There are other monsters to punish in this world. Like that...creature. Alex Mercer. Many evils, preying on the innocent. And you want to punish them. So...if you cooperate...we can bring you to the evils you need to destroy. Because that is what you are made for."

The wall opened, and Pyramid Head was able to get his blade again. It was clean and sharpened.

Fine. He would cooperate and get at the evils he had to destroy.

For now.


	7. Chapter 7

_"I…took my own daughter, attempted to force her to become the very epitome of my beliefs against her will, using mental conditioning and ADAM to turn her from a spirited, innocent child to a…to my idea of a saint, with no real…I killed her father in front of her eyes…and what does she do? She…forgives me, saves my life…In a way, it's worse than any punishment I could think of…now, I must live with the fact that I was wrong, just as corrupt as the tyrant I railed against…and that Eleanor is everything I wanted her to be, but not because of me. Not because of my moral conditioning or my…poor example. Because of the father I slain…twice…"  
-Sofia Lamb_

The meeting room had a spectacular seafloor view of the city. Casey stared out at the place in sheer wonder. A school of Remoraid swam by, not noticing her or the room she was in…a plain place, with a table, many scattered seats and a screen. There weren't any posters or other signs of Rapture's past…Arbiter wanted this room to be for the league and the league alone. So compared to the rest of the city, the room itself was very boring. Probably why the fish didn't look. She was still wearing the t-shirt and jeans from the burglary. It seemed like an eternity ago now. Lara said that other clothes would be provided…Casey guessed they wouldn't be leather.

Casey glanced around at the people inside the room, who were more interesting. The man in the bodysuit was there, fully recovered and glaring viciously at her and Jimi. Jimi sat on his mistress' lap and sneered back, but Casey silently cautioned him against more trouble. There was also the woman who had allowed her on, Lara. A man in an orange bodysuit and glasses was silently typing out something on his computer, completely oblivious to her presence. Finally, a young man in a green tunic was drumming his fingers by his sides, waiting.

Casey gave the green one a good long look. He was roughly the same age she was…and pretty handsome. Very good bod. Casey stroked Jimi for luck and decided to introduce herself.

Casey walked up to the young man. "Hel-lo, handsome."

Apparently he didn't think that meant him, and didn't respond.

Casey, getting a little irritated, flapped her hand in front of his face suddenly. "Helloooooooo?"

The lad suddenly noticed her, and looked up. He smiled a bit sheepishly, but didn't speak.

Shy, Casey noted mentally. "You talk, right?" He nodded. Casey gave him a look. "…yes." He answered nervously.

"Great." Casey thrust her hand out. "Casey Lynch. You?"

"Link." He eventually responded, slowly taking up her hand. Casey shook it a lot more energetically than he would've liked.

"Weird name. Oh yeah, this is Jimi." The Pikachu hopped onto her lap as Casey sat down right beside Link. He shifted a little uncomfortably.

"…Hello." He said. Apparently he was more comfortable petting Jimi than shaking hands with a girl.

"Careful, Jimi…" Casey began, but noticed Jimi was smiling a little. "Huh, think he likes you. Jimi doesn't let a lot of people pet him so easy." Link smiled slightly. Casey began again. "Listen, who's that guy? The one who's pissed off? Never got his name."

Link looked up and figured Casey meant the scowling man. "Snake." he answered.

"Really. How 'bout Mr. Computer?"

"Gordon, I think."

"Thanks." Casey noticed Arbiter walking in with someone else, a woman.

"And who's that broad? I saw her on some of the posters."

Link looked at the woman. "Sofia."

The woman looked at Casey. Sofia Lamb's eyes fell upon the girl so hard that Casey nervously scratched the back of her neck, trying to look away from the piercing orbs behind the glasses. Sofia breathed in her cigarette smoke and spoke to Arbiter.

"Is that her?"

"Yes."

Sofia put her hand under her chin in thought. "I cannot say that is who I would choose…"

Arbiter impatiently growled. "You wanted a Chronicler. Providence has provided us with one. Do not complain, Sofia Lamb."

"I wasn't." Sofia answered dryly.

Arbiter gave a sigh of contempt just as a loud scraping from behind another door drew everyone's attention. The door opened and Pyramid Head came in, ducking under the low way and dragging his colossal blade right behind him.

"HOLY-" Casey exclaimed and clambered over her seat to get as far away as possible. Her sentiment was shared by most of the room with the huge creature in the room. Jimi began sparking, but Casey stopped him.

"Stop there." Arbiter commanded. Pyramid Head looked at him, as if he was only acknowledging him grudgingly. Nevertheless, he did stop. "Stay put." Arbiter stared hard at the creature. It obeyed. Arbiter was very glad that it at least responded to his orders.

Sofia Lamb approached Casey and handed her an empty audio diary. "You are the chronicler, and the briefing is about to begin. Turn this on…"

_"…and do not turn it off until the briefing is complete. And don't speak unless we tell you to. Do you understand?"  
"Yeah, ma'am."  
"Very good. Arbiter, you may begin. Gordon, dispense with that computer, would you kindly?"  
"Ahem. You are likely all wondering why you all brought here. Allow me to explain from the beginning. During the Halo wars, of which I was a part, the governments of this world were forced to form a coalition, in order to maintain order and to fight back the…aggressors. The war is over, and this world is victorious."  
"Don't tell me we've been dragged down here for a history lesson."  
"Snake, please be quiet."  
"As I was saying…The war is over. But the coalition remains. Simply because a war has been won does not guarantee peace. There are still factions who wish to dismantle this coalition…to secure their own power. Some are merely deluded fools, hardly worth concern. Others are well-organized, genuine threats to the peace, people, and structure of this world.  
"WE are the hand of the coalition. We will preserve the peace, people and structure, at any cost. This…league was formed for this express purpose. The coalition commands us, and we will do as they command. We are a secret. No-one knows of this group…yet. We will serve the coalition for the sake of this world and others."  
"And how are we supposed to do that?"  
"Snake, be quiet."  
"I am about to explain. Around the world are several items and individuals that have…significant power. Power enough to challenge the peace if it fell into the wrong hands. Our mission, for the time being, is to capture and contain this items and individuals…one way or another."  
"Course, we can't touch the nukes…"  
"Snake, shut up."  
"Hmph. That…is all I have to say. Now, for the matter of this base. Sofia Lamb, you have the floor."  
"Thank you, Arbiter. There is… little to say regarding what will be your home for the time being. Arbiter and I are in control of the access to the surface. Only we will decide who stays and who goes there. That being said, you are free…within reasonable limits, to move throughout the city. These commlinks, which all of you will be required to wear, will allow us to track you and speak with whenever the need arises. You are free to explore. That being said, realize that this city is not entirely without danger. We have rebuilt and repaired, cleaning out as many of the remaining threats as possible. However, this is a big city, and we are still repairing portions of it. And to be frank, we may have missed a few…problems. Use caution and common sense at all times. Windows and pipes can still be broken. We have already contained the explosives provided in a special room. Weapons such as pistols or…swords, you are permitted to carry BUT anyone who harms another of the league or backup soldiers will be…reprimanded. That is all I have to say."  
"Very well. All of you are free to leave. Meeting adjourned."  
"OK, I'll just turn this off then…"  
-Recorded by Casey Lynch_

With the meeting over, everyone wandered off to wherever. Arbiter sent the two colossal Hunters to escort Pyramid Head back to his room. Casey looked at Jimi. "Ok, now what?" Jimi shrugged and Casey agreed.

Sofia approached them both, still looking carefully at them.

"Follow me, Ms. Lynch. I suppose you want to know where you will be sleeping."

"Yeah, I guess."

Walking through the ruined grandeur of Rapture, Casey and Sofia heard a strange rattling noise. Sofia and Casey looked around them in vain. Just more torn posters and rusted walls…and an alter to the 'Lamb of God'. With a detailed portrait of Sofia Lamb in the centre.

"You were the savior?" Casey smirked.

"That was a lifetime ago. And no." Sofia muttered grudgingly.

An air vent with a large hole was covered with blue butterflies and white cloths. Spray painted over the carved vent was the words 'Give yourself unto her'. Pictures of people who had given themselves unto 'her' covered another wall. Casey glanced at it briefly before walking away with Sofia. Jimi looked at it curiously. Those vents were how he was able to get to Casey…and he had heard a rustling as well. What else was in there?

Casey and Sofia suddenly heard a thump behind them. When they turned around, there was nobody there. But a guitar had been dropped onto the floor right in front of the vent, seemingly out of nowhere.

Casey smiled and grabbed the guitar without question. "This was how I'll stay sane while I'm here" she responded when Sofia inquired why. Sofia didn't say anything…just staring at the air vent with an odd look on her face. Soon, the three people just walked away, Casey eager to get to her room, having been burned out by all the recent events. Jimi stared back at the vent, having seen…something but unable to say anything about it.

The rustling in the vent giggled quietly. That present was well-received…Maybe more were in order. This was gonna be fun.


	8. Chapter 8

_"Feeling scared? Worried about your safety? The safety of your family? With Atlas and his bandits about, danger is everywhere in Rapture! At the Achilles shooting grounds, you can train yourself to defend your loved ones against the violent bandits threatening to take over Rapture! Practice your aiming skills from 8 AM to 5 PM daily, and come out ready to face the marauders and protect your greatest assets!"  
-Achilles shooting grounds advertisement_

Morning was hard to distinguish in Rapture, without the sun. It might as well have been midnight on the surface. Whenever it was, Link could not sleep, and decided to wander the city. The rusted glory of the city seemed to go on forever. Broken walls and scrawled messages tainted rooms that must have been pristine and glorious long ago. Cheerful music played automatically throughout the corridors, apparently not caring about the condition of the area. Link could almost hear the whispers of the city's long-dead ghosts…even to someone ignorant of Rapture's history, the feeling of conflict was palpable. It was eerie and beautiful at the same time.

Link came across an advertisement for 'Achilles shooting gallery', with a painting of a man holding a bow, aiming it at the sky. Link decided to check it out. He could use some archery practice.

The shooting gallery was a large room with a superimposed blue sky and clouds. The sky was disintegrating. Standard red and white circle targets were peppered around the gallery. A large wooden box was at the far end of the gallery. Link pushed a button and a clay disk flew out of the box.

Link took his bow and arrows and took aim. First he hit all the stationary targets, getting a bulls-eye on each one. A disembodied, cheerful voice congratulated him on every hit.

"Swell-ke-keep-it-up!"  
"Wow-Atlas-bandits-won't-stand-a-chance-against-you!"  
"Neat-now-try-the-clay-pigeons!"

Link pushed the button and one of the clay disks shot out across the back of the gallery. Link pulled back his bow, and the arrow flew to where the clay pigeon was going to be. They connected and the clay pigeon spiraled to the ground with an arrow sticking out of the centre. Link was about to fire again when scornful laughter erupted from behind.

"You humans always use primitive weapons, but yours are the worst I have ever seen! Hahahahahaha!"

A Sangheili in blue armor stood sneering at Link. He let out another snort of laughter, presenting a plasma rifle in his hand. It was long and purple, with a smoldering pack of heat on the muzzle.

"THIS is a true weapon, little human. Watch and learn." He aimed at one of the stationary targets, charging his weapon up with a low hum. The trigger was released and a ball of plasma flew out and hit the opposite wall with a blast.

Link was unimpressed. "You missed." he observed bluntly.

The elite had missed. The smoldering crater where the plasma had hit was a small distance up and to the right of the target. The voice laughed as well. "Ohhh-get-some-more-practise-buddy!"

Link calmly walked away, and the elite's sneer turned into an angered frown. "What was that, little human?" he demanded. But Link was already on his way out. The elite threw his rifle down in fury and stormed after the boy.

"Where are you going, human? Answer me!" Link's silence only made him angrier. "Damn you. Elite league of warriors, Hah! You do not even look like a true warrior, no marks of honor or even any scars!" The elite's hand strayed to his sword holster. "I think I will give you one, little human…"

With a cry of rage, the elite drew his energy sword. Two blades of deadly energy formed at the end of the handle he clutched in his hand. The blade crackled and hissed as it sped towards Link's back.

Link was as swift as the elite. Before the energy blade got within an inch of the young man, Link had unsheathed his sword, spun around and blocked the energy blade within the blink of an eye.

The elite's sneer appeared and disappeared quickly. "What..?" His energy sword should have sliced the primitive blade in two. Instead it was holding it back with seeming ease, blade to blade. The elite backed off suddenly.

Link and the furious elite stood staring at each other, blades drawn. Even more enraged, the elite in blue armor charged Link, slashing at him with his lethal energy blade.

Link parried and blocked every swing, moving to defend himself against the furious Sangheili. Blades whizzed about, the blue elite on the offensive and Link on the defensive. The elite swung his sword ferociously, determined to cut this insolent human in two. He didn't. Every time his sword was close, it would be blocked, deflected or dodged with expert ease.

The Sangheili changed tactics. Swinging his sword in a downward slice, he was almost predictably stopped by the human's sword. The elite, however, continued pressing downward, driving the human back down. Skill or not, he was still stronger than the human. The stalemate of blades kept going and it looked like Link would lose…

Until the elite's energy sword suddenly lost power. The blade disintegrated, and Link's sword shot up unresisted, hitting the elite in the face. Link may or may not have meant to cut the Sangheili's face, but it didn't matter. The blue-armored Sangheili backed off with an angry cry of pain. Holding the lacerated side of his face, which was now dripping green blood, the elite lost whatever he had left of his temper. "You damned filthy little insect…" he snarled, as he began to draw a plasma pistol and point it at Link…

The pistol was kicked out of his hand. Arbiter came out of seemingly nowhere, his cloaking device deactivated. He was not pleased. "That's enough, both of you!" he boomed. Link and the minor elite fell silent. Arbiter glowered at the elite.

The blue armored Sangheili couldn't hold back. "How long were you standing there?!"

"Long enough." Arbiter grabbed the pistol the elite had been holding. "Both of you. For this infraction, your weapons are confiscated for the time being." Arbiter took the sword and arrows of Link with some resistance, but less than he would have thought. "Return to your room. I want to speak with you later."

"Yes, sir." Link walked away obediently. The cut elite lingered. Arbiter turned to him.

"Aven, Report to the infirmary. And I do not want to hear about any more trouble with the people under my command. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir." The minor elite muttered before skulking off.

Arbiter waited until the elite was gone before turning his attention to Link's weapon. That sword again. He glanced at the metal blade and the cut on his own hand. Unusual.

_"Politics, politics, politics, accursed politics! It is naïve to claim that the end of a war means the automatic beginning of peace, or that détente will equate cooperation, certainly. But the belligerence of much of my world is stupefying! Despite all that has been revealed, many factions are still under the delusion that the halo weapons are the key to the 'Great Journey' and transcendence. Genocidal extermination weapons, built by the humans to wipe out the cursed parasite! Some of the council still do not realize the forerunners and the humans were one in the same, and believe that the planet should be eradicated…it will take a lot to change their minds. And then there are the loyalists, still clinging on to the role of the prophets, and exalting that insane liar, Truth. And apparently, it is my duty to make all these factions unify in this détente! Why? Because of my title? I am a soldier, not a diplomat! Yes, I am good at making swift decisions. So I will make the swift decision to put someone more competent in politics in charge of this madness."  
-Arbiter_

Arbiter met up with Rtas on the way to Gordon's lab.

"So that little human got into a brawl with one of my elites?"  
"Yes."  
"An elite with an energy blade."  
"Yes."  
"And he is NOT cut in pieces?"  
"No. In fact, there was not a cut on him. The elite was slashed lightly on the face, however."

Arbiter and Rtas looked carefully at Link's sword. To their eyes, it seemed little more than a sharpened piece of metal. Recent events, however, claimed that it was more than that.

"That does not seem possible."  
"It is true. I saw it. Somehow this Link was able to stave off the assault with this sword."  
"You know, you once held your own against three energy swords without a scratch."  
"True, but…Ah, we are here."

Gordon's lab had been placed in Point Prometheus. A neon sign with the words 'Optimized Eugenics' announced its former purpose. The inside of the lab was pristinely clean, with several of Gordon's machines and computers scattered around the area for tests. Arbiter noticed that several of them had been opened, wires and machine parts had been taken out…Arbiter guessed that Gordon was in the middle of repairing them.

Gordon Freeman was found in a room at the far end, working on a complicated math equation on his blackboard. He didn't respond to the two elites coming in. Gordon had taken off his orange combat suit and replaced it with a functional lab coat. On a hanger beside him hung a reconfigured Sangheili cloaking device. He was working on making it usable for humans. Whenever he wasn't working on something else, of course. The gravity gun he had used against Pyramid Head was on a shelf beside him, as well as a white machine that was still in the middle of repairs.

"Gordon Freeman." Gordon turned around unsurprised at Arbiter's voice. Of course, he didn't say anything. He couldn't. Gordon was completely mute. Rumors were that he had exchanged his vocal chords to some deity or surgeon in exchange for an increased intellect. True or not, he was a silent, brilliant scientist.

Arbiter presented the sword. "This can cut through our shields and block an energy sword. I want you to have a quick look at this when you have the time. Do not take it apart however. I expect some findings before the week is over."

Gordon looked at Link's sword from behind his glasses, then took it in his hand and accidentally gave himself a small cut. Nodding at Arbiter, he turned back to his blackboard.

Rtas was curious. "How do you intend to get anything from this man?"

"I will leave that to our chronicler. Put her to more use." Arbiter replied as he and Rtas walked out. "Speaking of which, inform her, Lara and Snake to meet me in the briefing room. Our first assignment has come in."

_"Axel, I KNOW the drill. I write the music, you come up with lyrics. But could we PLEASE change the title of the new one? I did not spend all last night composin' 'Lick ma lovin' self'."  
-Casey Lynch_

Casey's room in the Sinclair Deluxe was less fancy than the Mercury Suite apartments where Link was staying, but it was a lot more impressive than her usual digs. Better bed, an actual bookcase, and a real kitchen. Casey wasn't going to complain about the place she and Jimi were staying. Still, she was getting a bit stir-crazy. A riff on her guitar would help.

Grabbing her guitar, she fingered through the chords, making sure this guitar was in tune. It wasn't. A few adjusted knobs fixed that easily.

Then she began playing for real. Her fingers danced over the strings as she recollected her favorite solos. Hendrix. Sting. Weezer. She played them in no particular order, merely for the sake of having something to do, the comfort of some of her favorite songs in this strange place.

A Beatles segment was rudely interrupted by a banging from the floorboards. "Silence that infernal racket! I am trying to rest and I have had more than I can stand!"

Casey was used to aggravating neighbors. "This ain't infernal, bucko! It's classic. And if you don't like it, cover yer stupid ears! This is as quiet as I can get it."

"Graaah! I have had more than I can stand of you insolent humans! I demand some rest and I will snap that wheedling thing in two to get it! So SILENCE!"

"Talk is cheap, big guy. Yellin' won't get you nowhere with me."

"Very well." Whatever was down there quieted up, and Casey relaxed again. Just another loud guy, just like back at home. Heh. Casey was about to strum again when a loud banging came from the door.

"OPEN IF YOU VALUE THIS DOOR, INSOLENT INSECT! NO MORE TALK!"

"Christ…" Casey had the sense to lock the door behind her when she came in. Whoever was behind there was incredibly strong. The wooden door wouldn't hold for very long. Jimi began to spark in preparation for a fight.

"I WILL SNAP THAN DINMAKER IN TWO AND YOU WITH-" Suddenly the banging and yelling stopped suddenly. A suddenly meek voice stuttered, "Er…commander Rtas…"

Another voice. "Two unprovoked threats in one day, Aven. And it is such a mystery why you are still a minor. Leave."

"But…"

"NOW."

Two large feet skulked away in anger, away from Casey's door. Casey breathed a whoop of relief and Jimi stopped sparking. Rtas knocked on the door gently.

"My apologies. Aven is…troublesome at times. Still, it might be advisable for you to find somewhere else to play that instrument."

Casey rolled her eyes. "Fine."

"In the meantime, report to the briefing room, chronicler. An assignment has come in."

Reviews are always appreciated!


	9. Chapter 9

The League of Extraordinary Games

Chapter 9

_"An artifact known as the 'Anubis Stone' was stolen from a government base a week ago by some cult of religious fanatics. According to the tale of this stone, it is able to resurrect the dead with the proper ceremonies. Regardless of whether you believe that, it is extremely valuable, and the base wants it back. Furthermore, these cultists have issued threats against the coalition and clearly plan to overthrow it. A tip recently received tells us that the stone and the fanatics were seen in the ruins of a temple in India. The group is likely doing a ceremony using the stone. Your assignment is to recover the Anubis Stone as quickly as possible, and scatter these cultists. Oh, and if possible, capture the leader for questions."  
-Sofia Lamb, recorded by Casey Lynch_

Arbiter turned off the audio diary describing this new assignment. Recovering a museum artifact did not seem like a particularly challenging assignment, so his assigned 'task force' was small. He, Lara, Snake, and the fox McCloud were huddled in a small carrier, moving towards the 'temple ruins' they had been told contained the fanatics and the artifact. Another carrier carried several backups.

"Hand of the coalition, huh?" Snake sneered. "Bunch of errand boys. Out to grab a stolen museum rock."

"Be quiet."

The carrier kept moving. "I've been in these temples before, Snake. I've also had more dealings with artifacts like this Anubis Stone." Lara added. You would be surprised at how powerful they can be, and how accurate legends are, Snake."

"Yeah, right."

"Again Snake, be quiet. We have almost arrived. I this assignment unusual as well, but I do not complain about orders from our superiors."

"What does a stone have to do with keeping peace, huh? We just go wherever the coalition tells us to, don't we? Just another group of government puppets."

"Here is a recording from the leader of these fanatics." Arbiter brought out another audio diary and turned it on.

"With the resurrection of our almighty king, we will have the ultimate power! We will cast the world in eternal darkness, and destroy the rulers of the places of light! All that is needed is the stone of Anubis, and we will have the world once again! Come, my brothers, let us take the stone and the king of darkness will walk on this earth once again! Rise, Gan-"

The tape cut off then, likely when it was discovered who was recording this. McCloud smiled. "I think that warrants some action, huh Snake?"

"A lunatic's obsession? Please."

"Silence. We are here. Ready yourselves. Pilot, place the craft near there. It appears clear. Now…" Arbiter stopped and took a look at the plasma rifle he had grabbed.

"What is this?" It was definitely not a standard plasma weapon. Another power core from a plasma pistol had been haphazardly welded and glued onto the side. The power cores had been combined remarkably well.

McCloud shrugged. "I dunno. Someone has been getting into the armory and tinkering with our guns. Mine was toyed with too when I was stocking up." He presented his own weapon, which now had a conspicuous metal piece on its end.

"And you still brought them?"

"I tried it out. Shoots straighter." McCloud shrugged again. "I'm not complaining."

Arbiter looked at his 'fixed' weapon with curiosity. He would have to look into this later. After this assignment was finished.

_"I've looked at your offer several times, and…well, I accept. Team Star Fox would be happy to contribute to this league. To be honest, I do have a few reservations about working with…uh, a Sangheili, but other than that I don't have any trouble with the contract you gave us. Contact us again as soon as possible with more details."  
-McCloud_

The temple had been a holy place with impressive architecture and rich culture…a long time ago. Now it was reduced to a few stone walls here and there, with only a handful of moss-covered structures still standing. Nature had almost completely reclaimed this area…vines and creepers ate at the standing walls. Oddly though, there was no birdsong…the entire place was eerily silent.

Arbiter made the carrier touch down near the only complete structure. No one was seen outside. Lights blazed from inside however, announcing the presence of sentient life in the ruins. A strange chanting further announced it. The four operatives and backups stepped outside gingerly.

They were immediately greeted with gunfire. "GET TO COVER!" Arbiter boomed. Everyone obeyed, getting back onto the ship. The bullets rattled uselessly against the carrier's metal sides.

The rattling stopped and Arbiter looked through the small window of the carrier. There was nothing there…except a few large piles of leaves. Arbiter noted them and formed a plan.

Arbiter turned on his cloaking device, becoming almost invisible. "I need a decoy. Who will go out once I give the order?"

There was a silence, and then McCloud motioned to himself silently.

"Good. On my order." Arbiter stepped outside. He drew no fire…whoever was shooting could not see him with his cloak on. Nobody moved or spoke for a few moments. Then a voice came on McCloud's headset.

"I know where they are shooting from. Now show yourself. But be cautious."

"Got it, sir." Fox replied. Ready to run back into the safe area of the ship, McCloud stepped out of the docking door.

Several small creatures wielding machine guns rose up from under the leaves in a blink of an eye. Dekus were bizarre creatures, apparently made of wood. No-one was sure whether they dressed themselves with leaves or if they just grew on them naturally. Whatever the case, they were experts in hiding themselves.

Fox dove back into the ship just as they appeared. But before the Dekus could fire a shot, one of them was slain with a bolt of energy. The remainder looked around in frantic panic for whoever had hurt him, before being blasted with Arbiter's plasma rifle in rapid succession. Arbiter turned off his cloaking device and beckoned the others to come out. "Clear."

The other soldiers stepped out to no gunfire. Fox smiled. "How's the new weapon?"

"Fine. Let us finish this."

_"It's almost finished. We will soon complete our own little circle. The League of the coalition will not stand against us when we are finished our preparations. But we should not directly challenge them…no, let us wait and continue our current plan, try to keep them out of our business. We will soon have the world…no sense in challenging its champions too soon."  
-Lord Lucien_

Snake had wanted to go in first and look around. The man was an expert in espionage, hugging corners and sticking to the shadows until a suitable…disguise could be found. One was found relatively quickly. A man in red robes and a white mask with three holes in it walked past the hidden Snake. The man in robes disappeared and then reappeared a few moments later…it appeared. The robes made Snake itch but he left them alone, walking into the centre of the building where the chanting was coming from.

What met his eyes was staggering. A huge room covered with arcane symbols and lit with candles was packed with these fanatics. Legions of redrobes were standing alongside Dekus around a table where a huge man laid. The corpse was covered in a cloth decorated with sacred symbols, so it was impossible to tell who he was…or had been. He was big, and a hand outside the cloth gave him…greenish-black skin, oddly. And an interesting triangle-shaped mark on his hand that seemed to glow slightly. Beside him was a white sword, ready for him to draw…if he got up.

A large man in red robes and a strange mask, apparently the leader, walked up to the man on the table. "My brethren, we will make the king of darkness rise again tonight! Now is the time!" he boomed, and the chanting began again. Snake couldn't make out the words. One thing caught his attention though. The leader was holding up a tablet Snake had recognized from the briefing. It was the Anubis stone they were after.

Snake hung to the back. Confident that the chanting would drown out his conversation, he began talking to his commlink. "I see the target. There's a lot of these redrobes and Dekus around it though. They're having some kind of ceremony for the 'king of darkness'."

"How many?"

"A LOT."

"Then we will begin scattering. Equip the goggles now. Make sure you grab the Anubis Stone and the leader, if possible."

"Got it."

The leader began doing something with the stone, chanting eerily over the man under the cloth. Snake didn't think much of magic, so he didn't expect the stone to glow suddenly over the corpse. The chanting grew louder…

And then smoke bombs came in through the windows, whizzing loudly. Several hisses and the room was covered in smoke, throwing the cultists into a panic. Snake ditched his disguise and donned his goggles, which allowed him to see through the smoke. Red-clad cultists ran around in chaos as the leader screamed.

Snake, dodging the cultists who were running outside in fear, made his way towards the leader and the stone.

The leader bellowed. "No! It is almost finished, do not allow him to ruin this! Stop him!"

The cultists, who by now could barely see in front of them, could not stop Snake, even though they got in his way periodically and he had to shove them aside. The leader kept chanting, much faster now. He was in a hurry to get whatever he was doing done.

Snake was close when the leader screamed "ODOLWAAA!"

Snake was suddenly slammed aside by a huge man. Scrabbling back up to his feet, Snake saw an enormous silhouette with a sword and shield in the smoke. An inexplicable ring of fire suddenly came around them and lifted the smoke.

Snake was trapped in a ring of blazing flame with a huge, tattooed man. The man was 10 feet tall, and wore a wooden mask with a scowling face. Tattoos covered his body, which was bare except for a loincloth and the mask. The masked warrior wielded a colossal sword and a diamond-shaped shield with similar markings.

The leader commanded. "Odolwa, kill this intruder! We cannot allow this to be interrupted! Destroy him! NOW!"

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